Boondocks: Black is Back
by Traban16
Summary: Ichigo Kurosaki believed that he was so much unlike any of the happy mundane people around him. And why was that? Because he could see ghosts. Now Ichigo finds his life twisted upside down and completely changed when a group of true miscretins show up in Karakura Town to stir up both his life and the afterlife.
1. What Goes Hustle in the Night

**Chapter 1: What Goes Hustle in the Night**

* * *

A sigh escaped a man's mouth as he walked alongside a rather bubbly woman. His hands jammed into his pockets while he slouched, almost as if he were trying to not be seen with someone so upbeat and cheerful. The woman, however, ignored her companion's actions and his embarrassment as she skipped merrily down the street with shopping bags in her hands and a bright smile on her face. Humming her joyous tune, the woman turned to her friend, who only sighed again as he realized that her focus was now back on him.

"Oh you! Why can't you be _happy_ for once in your miserable life? It's a beautiful day, the people here are pleasant, and there haven't been any _unusual_ _disturbances_ since we got here. It's just been great!" the woman gushed as she placed her hands on her hips with some difficulty due to the amount of bags she was carrying, "But nooo! You just _have_ to be a rain cloud!"

The dark-haired man with his hair in a distinctive afro sighed again, the dull red scarf that was covering the lower half of his face obscured his scowl from her vision as he walked the streets of the big city with his friend. This man stood at a decent six-foot four-inches, wearing brown pants, an unbuttoned black coat, and an unbuttoned khaki dress shirt, exposing his white t-shirt. A pair of Timberland boots covered his feet as he shuffled down the street with his wearisome expression on his face.

"Whatever…" the man mumbled, kicking a can along the street as the woman rolled her eyes.

The man gazed over to the woman, secretly enjoying her attention being focused on him after the many hours of shopping. Her dark and wild auburn hair, which he found to be a proud display of her African-heritage, was tied back into to two giant puffball-ponytails. Her pink half-zipped jacket exposed her white tank-top and a small amount of rather generous cleavage. Her faded blue jeans clung tightly to her legs as she walked the street, showing the alluring sway of her hips and the rhythm of her rear. Her companion, oblivious to her, found it all rather enchanting as he scowled under his scarf.

"You're the only person that I know who could take a glorious day like this, and turn it into something unpleasant." the woman said as the man looked over to her after rolling his maroon eyes, "Even your brother is probably out enjoying his time in this new city."

"Or being the normal public menace he always is with… _that girl_." the man countered while narrowing his eyes. It was the woman's turn to roll her own emerald orbs as she overlooked her companion's slight at another of her friends.

"We're supposed to be taking in the sights of our new destination." the woman stated as the man pulled down his scarf to make his deep scowl known.

"No. We're _supposed_ to be running checks throughout the city. _That's_ our job; _not_… _this_." the man replied with distain as he gestured to her shopping bags.

"So what? There hasn't been any disturbances since we've been here, and we're being replaced first thing tonight. Besides, if there was any trouble, you would have been the first on it." the woman countered as the man gave a defeated sigh.

"You're right…" the man grumbled, jamming his hands even further into his trousers' pockets. The woman smiled like a ray of sunshine at winning the argument, the bounce in her step even greater now with her newfound enjoyment.

The man, however, couldn't help but scowl as he sensed a strong source of power nearby.

"We still need to get a place to stay." the man brought up, his scowl deepening as he thought over something, "I refuse to stay another night in that man's shop just because we have to show some newbie the ropes around here."

"I happen to like him and his shop." the woman said, her gaze not meeting his as she was too distracted by the nearby stores and their fabulous clothing options, "He's nice, if not a bit weird, and the children he keeps are adorable."

"I'm still wondering who he kidnapped them from." the man said, taking his hands from his pockets to cross his arms, "He's never been one to keep kids, and they should have gone to an orphanage."

"Like you and your brother would have if your granddad hadn't taken you in?" the woman countered as the man's gaze turned frosty.

"He was family. This is different." the man growled as the woman turned to him finally, her gaze hot as it seared into his own.

"He took them in, and they're not being mistreated so far as I've seen." the woman countered heatedly, "As long as he's good to them, don't bring this up. Maybe he really cares for them… like you care for me."

"What makes you think I care for you?" the man replied with a quirked brow as the woman smiled softly.

"Because your cheeks are flushed, and because I care for you." the woman said gently as the man sputtered nonsense for a second before raising his scarf to once again block view of his lower face and jamming his hands into his pockets.

"Whatever…" the man said, walking with new haste as the woman giggled behind him, hurrying along to keep up with his new stride.

"Wait up!" the woman laughed out, "This is just like when we were kids. Back when you had that-"

"Ophf!" the man said, stumbling slightly as he bumped into something while trying to get away from his annoying friend.

"Ow…" a girl on the ground moaned as the man looked down. Oh, well maybe that some_thing_ had actually been some_one_… who was carrying groceries… which were spilled all over the street from her bags.

"Oh no!" the female voice whined as she realized she just dropped her food, "Aww… Now what am I going to eat!"

The man blinked down at the girl he had bumped into and took in her looks. She was about a foot short than him, standing at five-foot-four, and had light auburn-orange hair that was held out over her face by two clips that resembled flowers. She wore a purple button-down shirt that was, in man's mind, a bit too tight for her along with a long flower-printed skirt. Glancing over the groceries, the man saw that there was an assortment of foods on the ground in front of her that were… just plain _odd_.

"Sorry about that…" the guy mumbled as he pulled down his scarf to reveal his mouth while speaking.

"Oh my goodness, are you okay, little girl?" a voice behind the male said as he saw his friend move to assist the girl.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine." the girl chirped bubbly as the man gave her a raised brow. Sighing to himself mentally, he bent on knee and began helping the woman with her spilled foods.

"Sorry again. Wasn't paying attention to where I was going." the man said lowly, looking very reluctant to apologize a second time until his female companion threw him a look that dared him to speak against her will for him to be nicer.

"Oh no! It's not your fault, I couldn't see where I was going!" the girl chirped as the guy and his friend exchanged a quick glance.

"Well, in any case we'd like to apologize again." the woman said, giving her friend a look that told him he had no say in the matter, "What's your name?"

"Inoue. I'm Orihime Inoue. It's very nice to meet you!" The now identified Orihime said happily, shaking hands enthusiastically with the man's friend as the woman smiled at Orihime's odd behavior.

"Well I'm Jazmine Dubois and this man here is Huey Freeman." the woman, now known as Jazmine, said with a smile as the man, Huey, glared at her for giving out their names.

"You two must be new here. I've never seen either of you at school before." Orihime said, gazing at the two strangers who looked about her age.

"Well, we were only here for a short time, and we'll be leaving soon, so no school for us." Jazmine said as Huey remained quiet next to her when all three of them rose from the ground with all the groceries collected.

At the elbow to his side, Huey dug into his trouser pocket, fishing out some bills as he handed them to the girl.

"Here. That should be enough to pay for the groceries I made you waste.

"Oh no, that's not-" Orihime started, but Huey gave her a stern look.

"I insist." and at that, Orihime shut her mouth and nodded quickly.

"Umm… Listen, I'm really sorry about all of this…" Orihime began shyly, her foot drawing circles in her nervousness, "If you'd like, you could have dinner with me! I don't normally get company, but-"

"Oi, Orihime!" a voice called out from afar as all three looked up the street to see a boy with uncanny orange hair moving toward them with a dark-haired girl.

"Oh, Ichigo, Tatsuki!" Orihime waved the two over, identifying them in the process.

"Are these people bothering you?" the boy asked, glaring at Huey, who raised a brow in response.

"Oh no, we just ran into each other, is all." Orihime said as the girl, Tatsuki, looked ready to deck someone as soon those words came from Orihime's mouth, "Umm… Ichigo, Tatsuki, I want you to meet my new friends; Jazmine Dubois and Huey Freeman."

"How the- _Oph_!" Huey opened his mouth to refute the claim of friendship, but Jazmine's elbow to his ribs stopped that.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow at the pair. He eyed them suspiciously while Huey exchanged a glance with Jazmine, both being able to practically reach out and touch the Spiritual Energy that seemed to roll off the orange-haired kid in waves.

"Hey there, name's Ichigo Kurosaki." the orange haired kid said politely, holding out his arm for Huey to shake his hand. Raising an eyebrow, but shaking the boy's hand quickly less Jazmine damage his ribs again, Huey responded in kind.

"Nice to meet you… _Strawberry Boy_." Huey said with a smirk, not one to allow an opening to go unmissed. Jazmine only sighed next to him as a comical tick mark formed on the teen's head.

"Urgh! Asshole!" Ichigo raged, throwing a punch and was shocked when the guy blocked his quick jab so… lazily.

"Sorry, kid, I just couldn't help it." Huey said with a shrug.

"You blocked his punch…" the dark-haired Tatsuki said in awe, almost never having seen someone block Ichigo so calmly when the orange-haired boy was annoyed.

"Umm… Don't mind him. Huey's a master of martial arts." Jazmine said quickly as Huey cast a glance at her while Tatsuki stared in awe at the pair.

"_I barely saw the guy raise his hand to catch Ichigo's punch. He must be really good_." Tatsuki thought, "_Maybe I can get him to show me some moves, or at least help out at the dojo_."

"_This guy doesn't look all that tough. And what's with the afro_?" Ichigo thought with his scowl almost mirroring Huey's own, "_Though he did catch my punch, and only Tatsuki and my Dad have ever done that before. I had better keep an eye on this guy_…"

"He's watching us…" Huey muttered, gesturing his head slightly over to a corner. Jazmine glanced up, spotting what Huey did. A man dressed in green with a fisherman's bucket hat and cane was peeking rather comically around the corner with a black cat riding atop his shoulder, looking directly at Huey and Jazmine as he gave the group a look of curiosity.

"Don't mind him. He's always been weird like that." Jazmine whispered back as Huey sighed.

"Yeah, but he's never followed us before. I think he's watching over these kids; especially this Ichigo Kurosaki." Huey concluded as Jazmine tapped her chin in thought before nodding in agreement.

"You're probably right." Jazmine said as Ichigo, Tatsuki, and Orihime seemed to hear her.

"Right about what?" Orihime asked as Jazmine smiled.

"Right about… my bags!" Jazmine said, thinking quickly, "They're starting to get a bit heavy, and Huey here said he'd carry 'em for me." and with that, Jazmine suddenly thrust the bags into Huey's chest, almost knocking him over as he glowered at her smiling face.

"Well that was unexpected. I didn't think I'd find those two hanging out with young Ichigo." the man in green said as he watched the group converse as they walked toward Orihime's place.

"That is an understatement." the cat replied in a deep masculine voice, "Them interfering with Ichigo's life was not one of the things I would have expected from them. Do you think they figured out that Ichigo is-"

"No, I don't think so." the man cut the cat off quickly, glancing to the black cat, "If that were so, they would have had Ichigo and his father along with us and… the others in chains by now. Well… Huey might, though I'm not too sure Jazmine would be as strict. Never the less, we must tread carefully."

"Right. Huey unleashed a spark of energy for a split second, and I must say that he's steadily grown stronger since those days so long ago." the cat said, it's yellow eyes narrowing on Huey's retreating form, "He now has such excellent control…"

"Something on your mind?" the man asked as the cat glanced over to him.

"Yes. Are you going to try and manipulate them into joining us? Because we both know-"

"I don't have to." the man replied, a smirk adorning his features as his hat over shadowed his eyes, "Young Ichigo has that power all on his own."

"Perhaps with those two, yes, but what about the other four? They wouldn't be so easily overtaken by a boy who will eventually want to fight and change the system." the cat replied as the man's smirk only seemed to grow, opening a small hand-held fan in front of his face.

"Oh, don't worry, they'll choose the right side when everything boils down the core of things." the man said, "Or my name isn't David Bowie!"

"… It's not…" the can deadpanned as the man grinned.

"Exactly…" he replied slyly as he and his feline friend disappeared into the shadows of the dark alley.

"Thank you, again, for having us over, Orihime." Jazmine said as she and Huey sat down to the young girl's dining table, "Are you sure you don't want us to help?"

"Yeah… No… Umm, it's okay." Orihime replied from the kitchen, "I'm used to doing things on my own. I live here alone, anyway."

"Wait, you live here by yourself?" Huey asked in surprise, "But you can't be any older than maybe 18 years-old."

"Nope. 15 years-old." Orihime corrected with a giggle as she peeked her head out from the kitchen and smiled.

"But that's so young!" Jazmine exclaimed with wide emerald-green eyes, "You're just a baby! You should have someone watching over you."

"But I do!" Orihime whined childishly in her own defense, "Tatsuki comes over and checks on me."

"Not one of your little school friends." Huey said, his fist slamming against the table, "An actual adult. Does this city really just let you live all by yourself?"

"Yeah, so long as I pay my bills and stuff. I get a lot of money from my aunt, who lives overseas in America." Orihime said as she came out of the kitchen wiping her hands on a washcloth.

"And now you see why I didn't want to be here in the first place. The world just keeps getting dumber and dumber." Huey said, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed.

"Maybe…" Jazmine said airily as her focus was on Orihime, "But you really need to be watched by a grown-up. This city can't be safe for a little girl like you. Something could happen to you here."

"Don't worry, I have Ichigo and Tatsuki watching my back." Orihime chirped happily before she started punching and kicking the air, "They're a super-strong crime-fighting karate team when they actually work together."

"That's not what we meant." Huey said, sighing as he rested a hand on his forehead, "Listen, we'll be here for another day or two. We'll watch out for you and then have one of our… _co-workers_ to come over to keep an eye on you when we leave."

"No." Orihime protested, shaking her head quickly, "You don't have to-"

But a look from Huey's stern gaze silenced the protests on her tongue as he regarded her with a sharp eye that brokered no argument.

"I insist." Huey said, and Orihime found herself shutting up and nodding just as quickly as she had shook her head earlier.

"Umm…" Jazmine began awkwardly, knowing Huey would have the girl under his thumb for the next hundred years if she didn't intervene, "How about that dinner now? You're so sweet, I bet your cooking is to die for."

"Oh yeah!" Orihime gushed, "Tatsuki says my meals are one of a kind!"

"… Why does that not sound too encouraging?" Huey muttered as Jazmine sent him a look while Orihime went to fetch the meal for her guests.

"Are you sure you want to be doing this? We could get into a lot of trouble for it, and you could get a demo-" Huey said, leaning forward after he was sure Orihime was out of ear-shot, but Jazmine cut him off.

"Yes, of course!" Jazmine whispered hurriedly, "She's only a little girl. She shouldn't be living by herself, especially in such a big city. Karakura Town isn't well-known for it's upstanding citizens."

"Then it's settled." Huey said, leaning back in his chair once again, "We'll stay here with her."

"We can't just make decisions like that for her, though!" Jazmine exclaimed as Huey scoffed.

"Tsk. Watch me." Huey replied with a scoff as Orihime came back into the room with steaming pot, "We're staying with you for the next few days."

"Oh… Umm… Okay…" Orihime said, nearly dropping the pot in surprise. Well, at least they were good people; even though they apparently cared a little too much for her well-being as strangers…

"Umm… Orihime… what is this?" Jazmine asked, as politely as she could, pointing to the bubbling mass within the pot while Orihime walked back into the kitchen.

"Oh that? It's my latest creation! It's soybeans mixed with tuna, red bean paste, butter, and sweet potatoes. Oh, and cheese! Can't forget the cheese! Heh, heh!" Orihime said, coming back from the kitchen with a large bowl of cooked rice. Huey glanced at the bubbling mass with disgust plainly evident on his face while Jazmine chuckled weakly as she restrained her own sour look.

"Yes, well… That sounds… very-"

"Nasty?" Huey suggested as he crossed his arms, "You can't eat this. You'll be sick for days."

"Huey!" Jazmine admonished as she gestured to Orihime, "Maybe she's been eating things like this for years."

"Maybe so," Huey agreed and that was when Jazmine grew worried, "Especially when people just let her live here by her-_damn_-self. She probably didn't know how to cook, and just started eating whatever she made from scratch." Huey got up from his chair and grabbed Orihime's wrists, guiding her to the seat opposite Jazmine and forcing the young girl into it, "I, however, will be cooking an actual _edible_ meal for us and getting her a cookbook."

Storming off toward the kitchen with Orihime too afraid to speak out in protest, Huey muttered to himself, "The hell is wrong with this place…" as he rummaged through drawers, cabinets, and refrigerator.

"Don't worry." Jazmine said, "Huey's a good cook. He's also a vegetarian."

"Oh, is he?" Orihime asked excitedly, quickly regaining her composure at the new topic, "Because I once wanted to be one, but Tatsuki said she'd never have a carrot-nibbler for a friend, and then I started imagining I was a bunny, and that foxes were out to get me, but then Ichigo came to rescued me from the evil foxes as a super-bunny, and…" Orihime babbled on and on as Jazmine simply shook her head with a chuckle and listened, figuring correctly that the girl was a bit ditzy ever since their initial meeting.

"_I think we're doing the right thing_…" Jazmine thought, listening to Orihime's fantasies go from bunnies to space invaders from another planet.

In the middle of Karakura Town, in an alley between the large buildings in its center, a traditional Japanese shoji door opened, letting out of it a pair of unusually clothed individuals. Both stepped out from the doorway, entering the city and taking in its sights as the shoji door disappeared, along with the strange darkness it brought.

One of the strangers was a petite raven-haired girl with a lone, long bang between her eyes while the rest of her hair was kept short, reaching only to her neck. Dressed in a black kimono with matching hakama-pants, straw-sandals, and a katana at her hip by a white sash.

The other, however, wasn't dressed like her co-worker. She was a stern woman, though her dark hair was long and wild, her bangs were cut rigidly short over her forehead. This other girl wore what, overall, could be described as a ninja's attire. This second female's uniform had no visible undergarments showing. This was because of her long-sleeved black top and her form-fitting black leggings. Even her sash was a dark gold color as opposed to her companion, whose was of a bleached white shade. She wore a black cloth-headpiece that covered the lower half of her face. She wore no sandals, but long black ninja-boots. On her arms and legs were tight bands to keep her clothes from moving too much, both for maximum silence and freedom of movement. Hung horizontal off her back was her own katana, which was encased by a dull brown sheathe.

"So… Uhh… Where do we go from here, my Lady?" the raven-haired petite female asked nervously as the other scoffed at her for displaying such.

"We shall locate the prior officers that were assigned here and then have them show us how they've been handling things." the taller woman said, giving the other no room to argue as she began walking off.

"Why they had to send yo ass." an annoyed voice cut through the silence as the severe woman scowled.

"Because your time is up, and now they want actual _competent_ people to safeguard this city." the woman replied as she watched two figures step into the alleyway.

The first was a male, with dark tanned skin and braided hair. His clothes seemed to be two sizes too big for him as they clung baggily to his body. He wore an over-sized red sports jersey and baggy blue jeans along with a pair of Timberland boots. His maroon eyes were narrowed at the woman standing opposite of him.

The man's partner, who stood next to him, looked to be as thuggish as he was. She were a green football jersey that appeared too big and a small pair of white shorts. Sneakers adorned her feet as she brushed one of her two long blonde braided-ponytails behind her shoulder. Her cerulean-blue eyes seemed to convey only a small amount more mirth than annoyance at seeing the ninja-woman and the petite raven-haired girl who stood timidly next to her.

"Ming, yo ass ain't no betta than us. Besides, Huey just called us and said we'd be staying for a little longer." the blonde woman said beside the man, who still looked irritated with the mere presence of the ninja.

"Freeman?" the ninja-woman, named Ming, said questioningly, "Why would your brother do that, Riley?"

The only male of the four-person gathering scowled, throwing his hands into the air, "The fuck should I know! I ain't babysitting that nigga!"

Ignoring her friend and his crude language, the blonde woman turned back to address Ming, "Regardless, Huey doesn't do anything without a good reason, and we aren't truly due back for another two weeks. So, I guess you're stuck with us." the blonde said, cracking a smirk as Ming chuckled.

"No, I believe it is the other way around, McPhearson." Ming said as the blonde woman laughed.

"We finally work together. Why the hell can't yo ass just call me Cindy?" the blonde, named Cindy, said as Ming shrugged.

"Buy me a drink in this god-awful town, and maybe I'll change my mind." Ming said as she stepped forward with her companion following along.

"Aye, hold up. Who she?" Riley asked, narrowing his eyes at the raven-haired girl.

Ming seemed to have forgotten her presence as she glanced over her shoulder at the girl in question.

"Oh, right… She's that Kuchiki girl from the Thirteenth Division. She's supposed to be protecting this city by herself, but the Stealth Force sent me to help her with anything… out of her league." Ming said, waving a hand dismissively.

"Rukia Kuchiki, huh?" Cindy questioned as the raven-haired girl looked up, "You're Byakuya Kuchiki's adopted little sister, right?"

"Yes Ma'am," the girl, Rukia, answered politely.

"As long as she ain't _nothing_ _like_ his ass, I don't give a fuck and we all cool." Riley said dismissively, "C'mon, we going back to the warehouse."

"You're not staying with… _him_?" Ming asked as Cindy shook her head.

"Nope. We're staying with _them_." Cindy said, casting a quick glance at Rukia.

"I see…" Ming said as they walked out of the alley way, "Though tomorrow we'll have to stop by _him_ to get our Gigai, and th-"

"_**RAAAWWWWWRRRRR**_!"

All four members of the group stopped dead in their tracks at the sound of the unnatural roar of agony. As one they all turned to look down the street.

"Target acquired." Ming said as they spotted a large creature with a buggish head made of bleach-white bone and the body of a centipede. It had sickles for arms and was trashing everything around it with its oversized body, trying to reach at the two people who were running from it.

One of them was a little girl with short pigtails, who wore a dress… and had a chain hanging from her chest.

The other seemed to be a orange-haired teenage boy, who was still in his high school uniform.

Ming turned to her young companion expectantly, "Here's your first target. Get to it."

"Oh, right! Sorry, my Lady. Excuse me." Rukia said, bowing to Ming, then to Cindy and Riley before she leapt into action.

Rukia ran at the beast, her katana unsheathed in an instant as she cut through one of the monster's legs with a single swing, making the two victims eyes widen in shock at what they saw. Rukia was, however, to busy to bask in their awe of her skill as she was then slicing through the monster's bone-masked head, bisecting it down the middle as it screeched in pain and everlasting agony before disappearing.

"That took too long," Ming said as she ran up to Rukia with a cell phone out, "There is another Hollow nearby, come along. Quickly!"

Rukia nodded as she sheathed her sword, speeding off after her superior while idly wondering where Riley and Cindy had gone.

"What the hell just happened?" the orange-haired teenager asked to the little girl, who shook her head while her eyes were trained on the pair of stranger who were now leaping atop street lights.

"Your guess is as good as mine, Mr. Ichigo…" the little replied as Ichigo sighed.

His life was just _too_ fucked up sometimes…

Meanwhile, Huey and Jazmine sat out atop the railing of Orihime's outdoor area. Huey scowled out over the city while Jazmine smiled.

"Little Rukia is here…" Jazmine said softly as Huey's scowl only seemed to grow.

"And so is Ming. Her, I can understand, but Rukia? This is a high-risk area where powerful Hollows have been known to spawn. Sending someone like her to be an entire team's replacement; _our_ replacement-…" Huey cut himself off to sigh, "Something is just not right here…"

"Maybe they're finally going to setup a barrier around this town like you argued last year." Jazmine suggested as Huey seemed to think it over.

"Yeah, maybe…" Huey said, allowing his head to rest on Jazmine's shoulder.

"I'm off for school!" Orihime shouted as Huey and Jazmine got up from the balcony and walked into the house to see Orihime struggling with her shoes at the door.

"We're walking you to school." Huey said as Orihime had learned from last night that arguing only got her "The Look", as she had dubbed it.

"Okay…" Orihime agreed meekly.

Later that night, Rukia and Ming were standing atop a building with Ming entranced in her cell phone as Rukia waited for her.

"This thing must be malfunctioning, or something." Ming said, tapping the phone against her open palm, "I'm not picking up any readings of Hollow activity. That one which escaped you earlier must have some sort of cloaking power."

"Yes, Madam Long, but we can still sense it." Rukia said, gazing off toward the homely little clinic across the street, "It's near that house. It just hasn't emerged as of yet."

"But until it does, we can't do anything but stake this place out." Ming said, putting away her phone, "You stake out this house while I make a sweep around town. Chances are that there could be more Hollows with this unique ability."

"Yes, my Lady." Rukia said with a quick bow as Ming disappeared before her eyes. Jumping from the building, Rukia floated lightly to the open window of the homely clinic, her Hell Butterfly guiding her entrance.

"The feeling is even stronger from here." Rukia said to herself, "I can sense it. It's near… And now it's gone again… Just great… Fuck my life…"

"Hey! You're that girl from earlier." Ichigo said, having watched in shock as the girl floated into his room. Ichigo was, however, ignored as Rukia focused all of her senses to find the hidden Hollow, "Hey! I'm talkin' to you!"

Ichigo's brow twitched as he did what he did whenever he was so blatantly ignored. Leaping off his bed, Ichigo crossed the distance between him and the girl in an instant. Spinning his body, he raising his leg with a snap, his heel catching the intruder hard in the small of her back with a vicious roundhouse kick.

The girl gave a yelp of surprise as she was thrown to the floor, "That hurt, you bastard! I think you broke my back!"

"Serves you right, damn thief!" Ichigo shot back, "And what kind of thief are you anyway, talking to yourself like this is _Mission Impossible_ or something?"

The girl looked mixed between flabbergasted and enraged, it was actually a really stupid expression on her, Ichigo noted, "Wh-What! Thief? I am _not_ some common thief! And, you can see me?!" the girl yelled as Ichigo scoffed, advancing on her.

"No, I was practicing karate in my sleep. OF COURSE I CAN SEE YOU, YOU DAMN THIEF!" Ichigo shot back, yelling aloud as the girl sat up from the ground.

"I'm not a thief! I'm a Shinigami!" the girl replied, completely missing the point, as Ichigo scoffed once more, jabbing a thumb into his chest.

"And I'm freakin' David Bowie! Now get the hell outta my room!" Ichigo yelled as he picked up the shocked and surprised girl, and he held her over his shoulder near effortlessly.

The girl, completely red in the face at such a casual and disrespectful dismissal of her great person, pounded her fists into the boy's back as he carried her toward his window, "Put me down! PUT ME DOWN, YOU BRUTE! How can you even _touch_ me?" She finally demanded, her brain finally working on figuring out such an impossibility.

The girl gave a cry of surprise when she was so suddenly flipped over into being held bridal-style while Ichigo gave her an annoyed look, "Now, out 'cha go!" Ichigo said as the girl suddenly realized that he was about to throw her out the open window from whence she came.

Thinking quickly, just as Ichigo was releasing her and tossing her out the second-story window, she hooked onto the windowsill with her fingers, and using her superior gymnastics and upper-body strength, flipped back into the room while landing in a crouching position.

As she landed, Ichigo had to admit that a part of him was more impressed with the maneuver than annoyed that she was still in his room. Rolling his eyes, Ichigo crossed his rooms as the girl got into a battle ready stance just in case he tried something again.

"How can you touch me? I can't even be seen by normal human beings, and yet you're saying you can see me, too?" the girl asked in shock, never having experienced such a thing before.

"Well…" Ichigo began sarcastically, "Seeing as I tried to throw you out of my house roughly three seconds ago, I'd say yeah; I can both see and touch you. Try to keep up, ya damn midget thief." Ichigo said with a sigh, "Why _tonight_ of all nights? I am in no mood to deal with this crap right now. All I wanted was some sleep, dammit."

"Yeah, well I should be on vast desolate plains, building magnificent sand castles out of silver sands. But no, I have to be here in Karakura… like this place is so damn important…" the girl shot back, sighing in pity of her own life before a look of realization overcame her, "Wait a minute. You're the one I saw earlier in town. I remember you now. You were running in fear with that departed spirit."

"Boy, nothing seems to get passed you! Aren't you just the textbook definition of perception!" Ichigo mocked as he bat his eyelashes comically at the girl.

"How strange…" the girl said to herself, ignoring whatever it was he was saying as she began to poke and prod him in an attempt to see how he worked, "You look normal, yet you must be defective somehow. No normal human could interact with me. How intriguing…"

"That does it!" Ichigo yelled, having already had a bad day. Now this bitch was calling him _defective_!? That was the last straw! He'd had enough of this bullshit, "I'll show you defective, you crazy bitch!" he roared before throwing another kick at her.

However, this time around she was prepared as she jumped onto his leg, using it as a spring-board to leap over him completely. A normal person would have fallen on the floor, but Ichigo's father Isshin had made him abnormal, as he pressed his hands to the floor and bounced off of them and back onto his feet, throwing yet another kick her way. The girl's eyes widened when she looked back, barely dodging the new attack as she had doubted his fighting capabilities. Deciding that she had seen enough, the girl launched her own counterstrike, using an open palm strike at the orange-haired teen's chest, knocking Ichigo to the floor where he glared up at her.

"Damn you." Ichigo groaned as he held his chest. She was almost half as strong as that guy with the afro who staying with Orihime, and that was saying something, "Who the hell are you?"

"Oh, you want to know who I am, do you?" the girl asked smugly as she gazed down at him condescendingly, "Then allow me to tell you. I am a Shinigami, or as people more often call us these days: a Soul Reaper."

"Soul Reaper? Sounds pretty badass." Ichigo commented as the girl smirked.

"You sound like one of my superiors here in town…" she said airily, recalling said superior officer, "But trust me, it gets much more badass." the girl said as she then began to explain to Ichigo what a Soul Reaper was and what they did.

But as she did so, little did the two know that another of the monsters Ichigo had witnessed being slain was now in search of a new, more powerful source of spirit energy than before, all so that it could feast upon the power it was hunting.

"I can't believe how many Hollows appear in this place." Ming said, slashing away at yet another of the masked beast, "We were warned that there'd be more than the average amount here, and that some would be a bit stronger than average low-level Hollows, but goddamnit!"

"Keep going, Ming! You're doing great up there!" Cindy yelled in support as Riley sipped from the straw of his overly large drink next to her.

"Get up here and help me, dammit!" Ming yelled back as she defended herself from a Hollow before slashing it's arm off. While it howled in pain, she thrust her sword through it's mask and upward through the top half of it's skull, killing it as it faded away, purified.

"Sorry, can't. You're the one on duty now, remember? This is basically vacation for us." Cindy said as she reached into her bag of chips and began eating again.

"I hate you people! At least save me some!"

"Sure I will. Right when you go to the store and buy more!"

"You have all of my hate, McPhearson!"

It had already been about twenty minutes since the girl finished explaining all about Soul Reapers and their duties, when Ichigo had decided to sum things up to ensure he had everything straight.

"So you're something called a Soul Reapers." to which the girl nodded and hummed, agreeing to what he was saying, "And you were sent here on a mission from a place called the _Soul Society_." again the girl nodded, "To deal with demons like the one I saw earlier today." the girl nodded a third time, but this time she interjected, "Hollows, but yes."

Ichigo, however, continued like she hadn't said a word, "Which were chasing after the girl's soul." another nod of conformation, "That's all very believable to me." the orange-haired teen declared calmly, before slamming his palms down on the table they'd been sitting at and flipping it over as he yelled, "LIKE FINDING AND GETTING AHOLD OF CARMEN SANDIAGO!"

"How dare you!" the female Soul Reaper retorted angrily, "It is not _that_ unbelievable! Besides, why wouldn't you believe in Soul Reapers? You've already freely admitted to being able to see spirits."

"Yeah, but I've never seen or heard of any Soul Reapers or these Hollow-things before today." Ichigo answered back calmly, getting comfortable because he could just tell he was going to be up all night.

"That might be because the ones who were guarding this town before me were… a lot better at the stealth aspect of the job and refrain from casual interaction." the girl admitted while rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment, her cheeks coloring a little shade of pink.

"In other words, you suck at your job. And frankly your whole story is just _too_ amazing. To be honest, I don't believe anything that I can't see." Ichigo said as the girl glared at him.

"Well you see me now, don't you?" she snapped, sneering at him as crossed his arms.

"Well, that's true, but just because you can pull a light show and sneak into my room wearing… what are those; pajamas or bath robes…? Ya know what? It doesn't even matter. None of that means you're some mystical warrior who fights monsters for the sake of justice." Ichigo said as he turned his nose up at her. If she had caught him on a good day, one where everything was normal, then he'd probably be far more accepting, maybe even understanding, but dammit was he in really a bad mood, "Why don't you go play your little games somewhere else, alright? Like in traffic."

"I just floated through your freakin' window, kid! How can you _not_ believe me?" the girl asked in complete shock as Ichigo chuckled.

"Yeah, like I said; little light show. Now, go on." Ichigo said, suddenly patting her head with a sleepy, "Go on, run along… ya little brat…"

"A brat, am I? Now that tears it!" the girl said imperiously with a furious undertone. The girl took a deep breath as she jerked her hand up suddenly, slapping her index and middle fingers against the center of Ichigo's chest, "**Bakudo #1: Sai**!" the girl bellowed, and the second she pulled her fingers back Ichigo's arms snapped behind his back as he lost balance, falling to the floor.

On the floor, Ichigo blinked in surprise, trying to move his arms from their cuffed-position, but failing to do so, "I can't move. What did you do to me, you crazy bitch?" Ichigo snarled, thrashing about on the floor like a wild beast while the girl smirked down at his misery.

"A crazy bitch _again_, huh? Well, you're not the first to call me that. Oh, and I used what is called a Kido on you. It's a high level incantation that only we Soul Reapers can cast. What you're under is the first level of Bakudo-style Kido; the Way of Binding." She replied, tired of dealing with him and taking amusement in his struggles as she simply couldn't resist taunting him further, "It's useless to fight against it, you're just wasting your energy, _human_. And I may look young to you, _boy_, but I've lived at least _two_ of your life-times. I would kill you for your insults, if it wasn't against our laws. So you, my _little brat_, should be grateful."

"Why you! You've got some nerve!" Ichigo said fiercely, glaring up at his captor.

"And now to deal with you…" the female Soul Reaper said airily, as if she didn't hear him at all while she pulled her sword from its sheathe and swung it down. Ichigo's eyes widened as he rolled out of the way, thinking she was trying to kill him, only for the butt of the hilt to strike the forehead of the spirit that had followed Ichigo home, which had been lazily floating about for the last several hours.

"P-Please no, d-don't!" The spirit stuttered fearfully, not knowing what was going to happen to him as he began to glow, "I don't want to be sent to the Underworld!"

"You don't need to worry." the girl said kindly as she smiled softly at him, her mood changing completely, "You are bound for a better place; the Soul Society. There, your soul will be at… umm… peace." the girl said, pausing somewhat as if she were trying not to lie.

And with that the Soul Reaper lifted handle of her sword from the ghost's head, leaving a symbol on the man's head. The glow that had steadily been building pulsed, flashing from the mark the brightest, before the spirit disappeared and a black butterfly appeared and then flew out the open window, flying away into the night sky where it disappeared.

"Where did he go?" Ichigo asked in pure shock, "What did you do to him?!"

"Fool, I sent him to the Soul Society." the girl answered, "It's one of the Soul Reapers duties, as I explained to you before. Some people may refer to it as "passing on", or the like. Now, to explain to you why I'm here." the girl said before she smirked back down at him, "And I suppose this time I should use small words so that you can understand me…" She reached for something inside her kimono before she paused, pulling out her notebook and a few markers as she proceeded to explain her duties using badly drawn chibi-rabbit figures she had names Chappy.

"_Those damn things are terrible_…" Ichigo thought with a sweat-drop, "_Though at least she's still gets her point across_." Ichigo continued to think as the petite Soul Reaper explained how she was now the Soul Reaper assigned to Karakura, to beat back the Hollows so they didn't start eating souls unchecked.

As she finished explaining, she looked up at him

"So, do you still have any questions?" she asked as Ichigo nodded.

"Yeah, umm… Why do your drawings suck, like, so badly?" Ichigo asked as the girl scowled, her right eye twitching before her arm blurred forward and, faster than Ichigo could see, she had drawn a curly thin moustache on him with her marker.

Having a good idea of what she had done, even if he couldn't see it, Ichigo screamed, "AHH! You bitch!"

No longer listening to him, the petite young Soul Reaper smirked as she went on, "Now then, let us continue on, _Monsieur Curly_."

And with that, she continued on explaining her duties while Ichigo began to hear something, but the Soul Reaper didn't apparently as she was too caught up in her thorough explanation of how there was another Hollow cloaking itself somewhere near his house, but that she didn't know where.

"So why the hell are you here explaining this crap, when you should be out there looking for it?" Ichigo asked in furious confusion.

"I would, but for some reason I can't seem to locate it's exact position, and whenever I'm close, it disappears." she admitted with a sigh, depressed at her lack of success on her first real mission to the World of the Living, "Usually I have no trouble finding a Hollow this close, but some powerful force seems to be blocking my senses."

"Another question, then."

"Shoot."

"Are you deaf or something?!" Ichigo asked angrily, "Stop trying to sense the damn thing, and open your damn ears! Can't you hear the howling out there? I'm guessing that would be a kitty? No, stupid, it must be a monster!"

"Howling…? What do you mean?" the girl asked, her head titled in confusion as she hadn't heard a thing, but before she could get an answer, she heard it! The howling!

Standing up suddenly, she cast a look over at him, still bound by her Kido on the floor, "Now I can hear it, it is defiantly a Hollow. Though why couldn't I hear it before… That doesn't matter now. Time for action."

"That's what I was trying to tell you, dammit!" Ichigo said, rolling his eyes in exasperation.

And just as he was about to say more about her apparent incompetence, the two of them heard a scream coming from outside Ichigo's bedroom door.

"That's Yuzu!" Ichigo shouted in recognition of the voice, frightened and worried about what was happening to his sister with creatures like the Hollow he had seen on the loose. Focusing all his efforts to breaking free of whatever was binding him, Ichigo barely noticed his companion running out of his room and down the stairs outside until it was too late, "Wait! Untie me first!" he yelled.

His family was in trouble, and now thanks to the soul reaping bitch, he wasn't able to help them. With all his might, Ichigo slid his body over to the doorway where he saw Yuzu collapse onto the floor.

"Yuzu! Yuzu, what happened?" Ichigo asked, his eyes wide with fear for his family's safe, especially his young and kind sister's at the moment while he called out in worry.

"Ichigo, Karin has… she's… Ichigo… some strange monster… it got her… you've got to save her…" was all Yuzu could say before she blacked out in the doorway of his room while he watched on with wide eyes.

Looking at the Soul Reaper, who had stopped just short of Yuzu's unconscious body, Ichigo panicked slightly as he cried out, "You've got to let me go, I can help! Please!"

The female Soul Reaper opened her mouth to respond, but at hearing Karin's screams, she said nothing as she stepped over Yuzu and hurried off, leaving Ichigo where he was. Ichigo growled as he fought even harder to get free, muttering that he had to get free in order to help his sister. He didn't even know how he did it, seeing as it was nearly impossible to move at all, but he was able to get down… or rather, tumble down, the stairs to where the petite young Soul Reaper had her sword out, ready to do battle. When she saw him, she looked shocked that he'd actually made it down to the fight.

"Stay out of this, you'll only end up getting hurt!" the female Soul Reaper shouted at him.

However, Ichigo wasn't listening to her, as his own mind was centered on the fact that his sister was in danger and he had to do to something, _anything_, to help her out of it. As his resolve to protect his family rose, so did his strength, as he began to stand.

The petite Soul Reaper gaped in shock and slight awe as she watched him, "How is he able to stand whilst under my spell?" she thought aloud to herself as Ichigo finally stood, though heavily hunched over, next to her, "Fool, you'll only get in the way!"

"Shut up!" Ichigo snapped, only caring about saving his little sister, Karin. His eyes widened beyond belief as he saw Karin being held by a Fish-like Hollow, "Karin!" he shouted. Actually seeing her in mortal peril made him fight twice as hard to free himself from his binds as the girl next to him looked worried, if not a bit amazed.

"Stop, fool! The Kido is too powerful for a mere human to break!" she shouted worriedly next to him, "If you keep trying to, you'll only damage your soul."

But Ichigo didn't care about that. He didn't care about himself at that point. All he cared about was that Karin was in trouble and needed his help. If it meant his soul would be damaged in the process of saving his little sister, then so be it. He wouldn't allow another member of his family be killed while he stood by and did nothing! He wouldn't allow it, not again! Never again!

The Soul Reaper watched in shock as her Kido came undone, crack by crack, piece by piece, and seal by seal before it finally shattered in an outward burst of energy. Even more shocking was when Ichigo had immediately recovered, if not completely unfazed by the breaking of her Kido, and took off running at the Hollow, grabbing a folding chair and brandishing it like an axe as he did. She was about to warn him that the human-made weapon would be useless against a Hollow, but the warning died in her throat as the Hollow punched the crap out of the young orange-haired teen with the arm not holding the human's sister.

As Ichigo was flying back from the blow dealt to him by the Hollow, the monster opened its massive jaws and spoke, revealing a smaller row of teeth within the mask, "**Finally, I've found you**…!"

As it made to grab Ichigo, the orange-haired teen was able to roll out of the way, taking up the chair once more. Ichigo saw the Soul Reaper use the distraction, slicing open a large gash in the Hollow's arm with the beast bellowing in pain and rage. Using the chair, Ichigo rushed up quickly and slammed the metal into the beast's hand, forcing it to drop Karin. Seeing the Hollow do so as he landed, Ichigo quickly discard his chair-weapon in favor of running up and catching his little sister. Ichigo slid under the Hollow's wide stance as the monstrosity cradled its injured limb before retreating into a tear in reality which had opened behind it.

"Karin! Karin, are you okay?! Please, Karin, be okay!" Ichigo begged worriedly as he cradled his sister close to him.

"Don't worry she'll be fine." the Soul Reaper stated somewhat calmly as she stood in front of him, her sword gripped tightly in both of her hands at the ready, "The Hollow left without devouring either of your sisters' souls. This particular Hollow seems to be after a much more specific soul tonight, which is unusual, but not unheard of. It's after one with a much higher concentration of Spirit Energy…" the Soul Reaper muttered to herself, reflecting on her observational findings before realization hit her, "In fact, the Hollow from before was after the same source of Spirit Energy…. The Hollows are really after you!"

"They're after me?" Ichigo asked in disbelief and shock, his wide-eyed gaze flying up to the petite Soul Reaper as he held on to his unconscious sister, "But why?"

"It is my conclusion that, for some reason, until now most of your own Spirit Energy was hidden deep within you." the Soul Reaper answered; her eyes scanning around for when the beast would inevitably return. It had been after the boy for too long to just give up after that one injury, "Until you called upon it to save your sister, that is. That's why I didn't sense anything unusual about you earlier, and that's why the Hollows are after you. When you interacted with the girl from earlier, the Hollows sensed your powers, and used her to find you here."

"_**ROOOOOOAAAAARRRR**_!" the sound of the mighty animalistic cry pierced the night air as the Hollow reappeared, looking angrier than before, and worse of all to Ichigo's dismay; mostly healed.

"It's back!" the petite female Shinigami yelled as she readied her sword once more, "Take your sister and get out of here! I'll handle this!"

"Wait, those things are after me!" Ichigo shot back, "So those vicious attacks on that poor little girl, Aoi, were also because of me?" he asked, beginning to feel worse about what he had unconsciously brought onto his family.

"Yes, I suppose that's one way to look at it." she said simply, not casting him even a glance as she readied herself for the Hollow's attack.

"And now my sisters could be killed, and it's entirely my fault?!" he asked, dazed at just what danger his mere existence could bring on his family.

Before the petite young Soul Reaper could say anything, Ichigo sprinted forward towards the Hollow, intent on doing something to save his sisters, intent on defeating the Hollow. That's when he remembered it; that when the Soul Reaper girl had cut off the limbs of the head, it hadn't died, but when she sliced through the mask while also having completely bisecting it, the Hollow had vanished. Ichigo knew he hadn't anything to cut the monster with, but there was one thing he could do to stop the madness.

He could sacrifice himself to save his family as his mother had done to save him…

"Hey you, Fish Face!" Ichigo yelled, gaining the Hollow's attention, "You coward! Stop going after others! If it's my soul you want, then come and take it, you ugly bastard!"

The Hollow's solid bone-white mask seemed to twist with rage before it started stomping towards him with it's jaws opened wide.

"Oh no…" Ichigo heard the Soul Reaper behind him yell out as she rushed over.

Just as the Hollow was about to reach him, his eyes widened in horror as he saw the Soul Reaper appear in front of him in a burst of speed,

"Wait! It's me it wants! Sto-!" Ichigo yelled, trying to stop the girl, but the damage had already been done. The Soul Reaper had stabbed the Hollow with her sword, but at the same time, the Hollow had sunk its teeth deep into her shoulder, both wounds gushing onto the pavement to mix in a pool of blood.

"Soul Reaper!" Ichigo yelled, not knowing the petite woman's name as she fell to her knees while he Hollow grabbed its face in pain; the very corner of its mask chipped. The Hollow didn't hesitate to beat a hasty retreat, leaping backwards into its dimensional tear once again, using its only real skill to its full advantage.

"You… are… a fool…!" the Soul Reaper said between painful breaths, "How could you honestly think… you'd be any match for a Hollow?" the girl demanded, slowly pushing herself up to leaned up against the nearby wall, "Do you honestly think that it would be over, if you gave it your soul? One soul wouldn't work; one soul won't satisfy them for long! If you don't stop interfering, we'll all be its food… dead."

"But what else could I do?!" Ichigo demanded, "This thing's after my family! I don't have anything to kill it with! The chair was basically useless!"

"Fool, I told you that a _human_ weapon couldn't destroy a Hollow's mask." the injured female said, scoffing weakly as she scolded him before thinking better of it a second later when she coughed up blood.

"Anything can be destroyed if you put enough force behind it! The chair just wasn't the best weapon of choice!" Ichigo admitted the soul reaping female nodded slowly.

"You would be right about that…" the woman admitted as she clutched at her shoulder, "If it was a normal being, then yes, you'd be right. However, a Hollow isn't a normal being. It's mask can only be damaged and destroyed by a Zanpakuto, a weapon made and used only by Soul Reapers-" coughing painfully as she tightly clutched at her injured limb, she looked up in something akin to horror as the Hollow began to reappear, looking around for them, "I'm too injured to fight, so here's my question to you; Do you want to save your family?"

"Of course I do! If there's a way, then tell me!" Ichigo answered quickly, glad there might be a way to save his family.

"It will only be temporary." the injured girl stressed as she picked up her sword and held it out, "But you must become a Soul Reaper."

"What?" was Ichigo's shocked reply as his eyes nearly burst from his skull.

"You must take my Zanpakuto, and run it through to your very being - your heart, your soul…" the girl said, her voice never wavering. Noticing that the had Hollow spotted them, she quickly went on, "… so that I can pour my power into you." hearing the Hollow give an animalistic battle cry, she began speaking even faster, "I can't guarantee that that you'll live, but if it doesn't work… it doesn't matter."

Seeing the Hollow stalking towards them, Takeshi made his decision in less than the second that he had glanced at the monster, "If this doesn't work I want you to know I'll be haunting you forever… Soul Reaper."

"My name is Rukia, Rukia Kuchiki, and I think I can live with that." the petite young Soul Reaper, now identified as Rukia, replied while smiling slightly as Ichigo took her blade within his hands.

Steadying the weapon in his grip, Ichigo took a shaky, yet deep breath before he plunged the cold steel into his heart, feeling the cold metal sink into his chest with almost no resistance. Though, the pain of being run through would be completely bearable if he was able to save his family.

"I'm Ichigo Kurosaki." he replied, as the two nodded to each other, the process of power transference beginning.

Just as the Hollow was above them, bearing down upon them to devour their souls, there was a huge flash of light. When the light had died down somewhat, the Hollow which had been doing battle with them for so long appeared to be suddenly missing an arm.

Rukia looked over at the Hollow in shock, but then quickly amended her gaze toward Ichigo as he landed back in front of the Hollow. He was dressed in the standard Soul Reaper uniform of the formal _Shihakusho_. A large, thick, and heavy brown leather belt ran across Ichigo's chest as it held his Zanpakuto's sheath diagonally across his back. Her eyes widened even more as she saw the size of his Zanpakuto. Though it took the form of any ordinary katana, it was enormous in size! The thing was nearly six times as big as her own sword had been!

It took her longer then she thought to get over her shock as she suddenly came to the realization that she was having trouble breathing. It wasn't because of her wounds, as though had disappeared. No, it was because of just how intense his Spiritual Pressure was on her. Glancing down at her shaking hands, Rukia nearly had a heart attack as she saw that she was in a standard white kimono! The dress of pure souls! Her powers! Dammit!

"How is this possible?" Rukia gasped as she watched Ichigo defeat the Hollow in one near effortless swing while it hopped around, now on one foot, "I meant to only give him half of my power, but somehow he got almost all of it. What kind of being is he? I've never seen a human with Spiritual Energy like this... That's what was blocking my senses before!" Rukia realized as she watched Ichigo in shock and awe.

Ichigo was about to finish off the Hollow, but before he did, he needed to let it know just why he had to kill it, "You'll pay for harming my family, you Hollow scum! Now, feel the wrath of this blade!" and with that said, Ichigo brought his sword down from high over his head onto the Hollow's mask-skull. The Hollow came one last roar, an unusual one that was not of anguish, but of something else while it was being completely bisected by Ichigo.

Ichigo sighed, seeing the night brighten around him to it's normal, un-eerie coolness as he approached his unconscious sister and Rukia, "Yo, you ok?" Ichigo asked as he shouldered his massive katana.

"Yes, I'll be fine." Rukia replied as she stood shakily on her feet, feeling slightly faint from the lack of power in her limbs. She'd need to get a Gigai soon, or else-

"_**RAAAWWWWWRRRRR**_!"

"What the-?!" Ichigo whipped around in surprise as Rukia's ad his own eyes widened in a level of horror and dread they had not felt before in the entire nightmarish night.

"H-Hollows! Lots of them!" Rukia muttered aloud as she and Ichigo watched the incoming horde of monsters coming.

"_That's impossible_! _There's too many of them_!_ Like a small army of them, and all coming here… converging for _one_ soul_?" Rukia asked herself in shock… before it clicked and she looked up at Ichigo, "_No_… _could it be that the last Hollow gave his final cry to summon them_?_ But that isn't how Hollows work. They're little more than beasts and monsters, surviving only for themselves_._ Or could it be that our Spiritual Pressure, and that of my superiors, have attracted them all to this city and they're going after the weakest first_? _I don't know what to think anymore, but the point is that we're going to die here unless something's done quick_!"

"There are so many of them…!" Ichigo muttered to himself in terror as he gazed upon the large amount of Hollows. He knew he could fight, but against so many at once…? Ichigo's bravo was lost to him as his entire body shook in fear while the literal legion of Hollows advanced on him… Rukia… his unconscious family… his town… everything…

As the first Hollow reached them, Ichigo raised his sword, and glared, his hands shaking as he did. If it was his time to die, then fine! But he wasn't going to let anything touch his family while he still drew breath! Not so long as he was alive would they ever touch his family again!

The first of the many Hollow raised it's massive claws high into the night, the bone-white sharp appendages gleaming in the pale moonlight. As the beast brought its claws down swiftly, Ichigo braced himself for the clash between claws and sword, tensing his body.

But nothing happened…

Rukia's eyes widened even more than before as she shakily gazed up at the first Hollow.

It had a large gapping hole through it's mask…

"Sorry we late." a female voice from behind them said as Ichigo and Rukia looked away from the slowly vanishing Hollow toward the source of the casual voice.

There stood a blonde woman with a smile on her face as a dark-tanned man held a smoking pistol pointed at where the Hollow had been while he knelt down next to the blonde.

"We felt yo Spirit Energy disappear, and Ming went for yo Gigai." the dark-skinned man said as he glanced at Ichigo before firing another shot from his gun, shooting through at least three more Hollows with a bullet so fast Ichigo barely caught sight of the blur, "You had to give yo powers to him, huh? Shit, is yo ass in trouble."

"Indeed she is." another voice, this one distinctively Asian and female, said as a woman landed in a crouch next to the two mysterious saviors while a body hung limply from her shoulders, "You were playing around, and now you're powerless. I expect an explanation as to why that is in the morning."

"Y-Yes, Ma'am." Rukia said shakily, her powerless state winded by the mere presence of the three strangers.

"Now we finish up here. I'm about to unleash all kinds of kick-ass on these muthafuckas." the guy said as he pulled a second gun to his hand before leaping off the ledge they had been on. He soared through the air, jumping into the mix of Hollows with guns a' blazing.

The blonde woman sighed as she muttered something under her breath, pulling out a sniper rifle as Ichigo noticed that the sword which she had been holding went mysteriously missing, "That boy go get his ass killed one of these days. I wish he stop hanging out with them dumbass niggas in the Eleventh."

The Asian woman said nothing as she stared coldly at Ichigo, who felt it grow harder to breath the longer she did. Then his limbs grew heavier under her gaze, as though they were slowly becoming lead. He dropped to his knees as a Hollow near him suddenly dropped too, but was purified when it did. Ichigo brought a hand up to his throat, feeling as though it were closing on him before he glanced up, only to find the Asian woman before him like she had been there all day long.

Storm clouds began to gather overhead in the once cloudless night sky. Thunder rumbled and roared as loudly as the Hollows while lightning flashed, catching large Hollows and smiting them down each time it illuminated the skies . The Asian woman, however, was completely unfazed by her surrounds as she uncrossed her arms and glared down coldly at Ichigo.

"You're a little too powerful to say that all your power came from young Miss Kuchiki. I'll be watching you… Ichigo Kurosaki. Know that, and fear it." the woman said before she placed a hand in front of Ichigo's face.

Ichigo felt his eyelids grow heavy, and his mind hazy over with sleep as the last thing he heard was the voice of the afro-haired guy he had met with Orihime and Tatsuki.

"This wasn't a coincidence. It was planned." the guy said as Ichigo dropped into the realm of sleep.

Rukia, however, did not get that luxury as all she could do was look on in shock at the level of power which her superiors possessed, even while in the Realm of the Living. She watched in awe as they tore through the ranks of Hollows with relative ease, "_Amazing! Even while their powers are only at a fraction of their true depth, they're still able to fight at such a level. They make it look so easy_…" was all Rukia could think of before one of her superiors appeared at her side.

"Ahh! Lady Jazmine!" Rukia exclaimed as she bowed in respect to the woman, who smiled at her.

"Oh Rukia, hey. Sleep time." Jazmine said sweetly as Rukia blinked in confusion.

"Sleep… time…?" Rukia said slowly in confusion before Jazmine's hand was in her face, darkness overtaking her vision quickly as she slumped over into Jazmine's waiting arms.

Little did the unconscious Rukia or Ichigo know, that night had started something that would drastically change the future of both the Human World and the Soul Society… _forever_.


	2. The Strawberry Jumpstart

**Chapter 2: The Strawberry Jumpstart**

* * *

"Well, what'll we do now?" Jazmine asked as they all sat atop the Kurosaki Clinic rooftop. Huey leaned against the railing with his arms crossed next to her while Cindy and Riley sat on a bench. Ming was busy gazing out over the city as the wing blew their hair, the dark clouds of the sudden storm from earlier now departing into nothingness.

"We can't contact Soul Society and tell them she gave up her powers. We'll just have to wait for them to contact us with our replacement." Huey sighed out as he pushed off the railing, "That way, she'll avoid being locked up and can just take a small medical leave."

"Milady wouldn't mind if I worked with little Rukia to help her regain her powers." Jazmine said as Cindy shook her head.

"We should report her. If we don't, then we'll _all_ get in trouble for this." Cindy said as Riley scowled.

"Ah! I ain't snitching. That's the law; niggas don't snitch." Riley said as he and Cindy stared each other down.

"Whether we report her or not makes very little difference. She'll still be imprisoned with at least medical attention until she can return to duty." Ming said as she ran a hand through her long dark hair, "But what you said earlier worries me, because it was exactly what I was thinking."

"_This wasn't just some coincidence. This was planned_." they all recalled as Huey's words echoed through their minds in unison.

"It _was_ planned. The attack, a Hollow that could hide itself, its calling others to finish the job. From what I could see, this wasn't just some random attack by some hungry Hollow. It was planned, and now we need to know why." Huey said, scowling deeply as he though on his theory.

"What we need is proof." Cindy said as Ming nodded, "Not just proof that what happened here was planned, but also proof that Rukia or that boy were the target of the attack and that something bigger is going on here."

"How do we get that?" Jazmine asked as Riley scowled much like his brother, Huey.

"We need to stay longer, as long as Rukia Kuchiki does. That way, if we see a repeat of strange shit happenin', then we can make a detailed report of it." Riley said as Huey nodded.

"But we can't stay. Who knows how long it'll take for them to assign another person to the area. We have duties back in Soul Society. We're-" Jazmine said as Huey gently rested a hand atop her own.

"Staying…" Huey said softly, giving Jazmine's hand a gentle squeeze, "Whatever is going on, we need to investigate."

"Yeah… you're probably right… Heck, you're _always_ right…" Jazmine muttered with a pout as Cindy chuckled at her while Huey's lip quirked upward into a small smirk.

"Good to know." Huey said before he turned to look all of them over, "Now here's what we're gonna do…"

* * *

Ichigo's eyes popped wide open with his first instinct being fear. After the night that he had endured, Ichigo had no idea what was going to happen around him. He sat up quickly in his bed as he scanned the room, vaguely noticing how everything appeared to be back to normal. His window was open though, the wind blowing his curtains softly as the morning sun bathed the room in natural light. Ichigo took in a deep breath as he got out of his bed, slipping on a pair of fuzzy slippers from under his bed as headed out the room.

"GOOD MORNING, ICHIGO!" a voice screamed as Isshin appeared out of nowhere, trying to attack Ichigo in his usual fashion. But this time Ichigo was ready, stopping the attack in midair by crossing his arms over his chest in an X-fashion, rejecting the midair kick from his father.

"What the…?" Isshin said as he looked in disbelief, "You stopped my screw-kick with ease? You are getting good, my boy- _uff_!"

"Yeah, now back off!" Ichigo shouted as he punched his father away, the man hitting the wall with a silly expression on his face, "How the hell are you up and moving after everything that occurred last night?" Ichigo asked, vaguely recalling that his father had received a grievous injury himself and was unconscious when Ichigo had struggled to get downstairs.

"Why, what happened last night?" Isshin asked, jumping up completely unharmed as he gazed at his son with a confused expression while Ichigo stared back at him with a deadpan expression.

"You mean you don't remember the giant thing, a Hollow, which attacked our house?" Ichigo asked as Isshin gave him yet another bewildered look.

"Got no idea what ya talkin' about, son." Isshin replied, "You sure you haven't been in the med drawers again?"

"Ugh, never mind, it's nothing." Ichigo sighed out in irritation as he pushed past his father, wandering downstairs into the kitchen where Yuzu was standing at the stove, making breakfast. Karin sat at the table staring at an empty plate with so little emotion that the spoon she was holding could have done the same if it had eyes to stare.

"Yuzu, can you hurry it up?" Karin asked as she continued to have her staring contest with the plate.

"Hi Ichigo!" Yuzu greeted bright, "Are you hungry?" she asked as she turned to Ichigo, ignoring Karin's apathetic demands for nourishment.

"Hey, do you guys know what happened last night?" Ichigo asked as Karin and Yuzu gave him confused looks, "Seriously, what the hell is going on around-?"

"WHAT THE HOLY HELL, MAN?!" Isshin screamed in the other room as Ichigo and his sisters rushed in to find Isshin staring at a giant hole in the living room wall, "WHEN THE HECK DID THIS HAPPEN?"

"Probably last night, genius." Karin replied sarcastically as she examined the hole, "Looks to me like a truck just plowed into the house…" As his family stood and discussed this situation, Ichigo stood in the middle of the room with his eyebrow twitching and his mouth agape, not knowing what to say. His mind drifted back to the image of the Shinigami- the Soul Reapers- _the whatever the hell they were_! The one… Rukia Kuchiki…

"_Oh, this shit is _not_ funny_." Ichigo thought sourly as he crossed his arms and gave the giant hole in his house a glare, "_Where did that bitch go anyway_? _She could at least have repaired this crap! Or even sent us a check for reimbursement. But _nooo_, we just had to get the one that sucked at their job_."

* * *

Ichigo decided not to bother with the thought anymore, even though it still persisted to bother him, as he made his way to school. Getting there, he sighed loudly while walking up to his locker and opening the door slowly.

"Hey Ichigo!" a voice said as he looked up from his locker, Tatsuki and Orihime walking toward him, together as usual.

"Hey; Tatsuki, Orihime." Ichigo replied casually as he pulled a book from his locker and slammed the door shut, "What's up?"

"Um, hi Ichigo." Orihime said quietly as she blushed a bit while Tatsuki decided to press on.

"So, Ichigo, what happened at your house last night?" Tatsuki asked as she walked up to her locker and shoved some books inside, "We heard that your house got hit by a truck or something. Everyone okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, it happened in the middle of the night, so no one was hurt." Ichigo lied, looking away. He wanted to say what really happened, but he didn't need everyone thinking he was crazy… again… "So what period is this? I sorta just wandered here while brooding over the giant _fuck-hole_ in my house."

"Well you're just in time for third block, slacker." Tatsuki replied as she grabbed another book from her locker and closed the door, "Got to get going. See ya later, Ichigo."

"Bye Ichigo!" Orihime departed enthusiastically as she followed Tatsuki, waving while she walked away. Ichigo waved back as he headed to class, walking in and taking a seat anywhere he damn well pleased. He turned around as he saw his two friends; Keigo Asano and Mizuiro Kojima, sitting behind him, messing around as usual.

"Hey Ichigo! We heard that you, like, _died_ last night!" Keigo shouted from where he was as he spotted Ichigo, Ichigo only initial response was the shaking of his head followed with a sigh.

"Do I look dead, dumbass?" Ichigo asked as Mizuiro leaned in and smiled.

"Well, you certainly don't seem deceased." Mizuiro said, playing innocent, "Though you know what coach says; if ya drop dead, put a bandage over it and keep running."

"I hate running laps in gym…" Keigo muttered dejectedly as Mizuiro pet his head like a puppy.

"Poor thing…" Mizuiro said softly before he switched his gaze back to Ichigo, "By the way, did you see the new-?"

Mizuiro didn't get to finish his question as the teacher came in, clearing her throat loudly before dropping a book on her desk to get the desired silence she wanted.

"Okay guys, let's do some attendance here…" the teacher said as she began to read names off her clipboard.

"Good!" she said excitedly after going through the normal attendance, "Also, today we will be introducing new transfer students. Their names are a bit odd here, but please bare with them as they've all just came all the way from the United States of America."

The door opened just as the teacher announced their names, "Riley Freeman, Cindy McPhearson, and lastly Rukia Kuchiki! Please, give them all a proper welcome."

In the doorway, making Ichigo's eyes widen beyond belief, were three of the six people from last night's mysteriously forgotten events. The one named Riley stood slouched with his hands jammed into his pockets and his face set in a fierce scowl while the blond next to him didn't seem much happier. Rukia, however, seemed to look as chipper as anyone could at being in a new place.

The three simply stood in the doorway before the teacher told them they could come in, all three wearing the school uniforms with Rukia being the only one not looking ready to shred her own.

"Please, introduce yourselves so the class can get a better feel for you." the teacher said as Riley and Cindy shot the instructor dark looks while Rukia smiled.

"What up?" Riley said, not taking his hands from his pockets as he stepped in front of the blackboard, "My name Riley, or Reezy, or even Esco. The only reason I'm here is 'cause niggas be trippin' and I ain't got shit else to do."

"We don't use that sort of language here." the teacher retorted with a set scowl as Riley gave her a look.

"You might not wanna tell me anything." Riley shot back, "Tellin' me shit could end with death, ya hear me?"

"Reezy!" the blond girl, Cindy, reprimanded. Riley sighed, shaking his braids out before he turned back to the teacher.

"What I meant to say is that I don't think you want to care too much about what I say, 'cause trust; I'm go say whatever the hell I want and ain't nobody in this joint go stop me."

"We'll see about that." the teacher challenged as Riley shrugged, seemingly unconcerned with her authoritative issues.

"Hi, I'm Cindy. I like clothes and guns."

"Clothes and… guns, you say?" the teacher asked, blinking as Ichigo found himself doing the same when he recalled the large sniper rifle the blonde had been using.

"Yeah, clothes and guns." Cindy repeated, "What? You got a problem with that?"

"N-No, I suppose not!" the teacher said quickly, "So long as you don't bring any on school campus that is…"

"Good, then we cool." Cindy said as though the entire thing was a moot point and didn't involve deadly rifles, "At least, for now."

"Hello everyone, my name is Rukia!" Rukia chirped happily, a bright smile playing on her face, "And it's a pleasure to meet you all! I hope we can all be friends!"

"Fake ass muthafucka…" Cindy and Riley grumbled under their breath, but everyone heard them.

"Wow, that Rukia girl is hot, huh?" Keigo whispered in Ichigo's ear as Ichigo didn't reply, still in shock from seeing the three before him.

"Also, we have a change in staff as of yesterday." the instructor went on, flipping through a binder, "Here it is. It seems that Nurse Yoke, who as you all know has been here for well over fifty years, suddenly decided to retire yesterday and pursue a life of elderly ease from the comfort of her own home and the dependence of her great-grandchildren. Her replacement, a Miss… Jazmine Dubois, will now be on staff and taking Miss Yoke's place in the infirmary and as the school's nurse."

"_Wait_!_ Wasn't that the name of one of those guys staying with Orihime_?" Ichigo asked himself, "_Could she be a Soul Reaper too_?"

"That's all the excitement for today, so if you three will just take a seat anywhere, we can begin." the young female teacher said as Riley and Cindy took seats all the way to the back while Rukia took a seat next to Ichigo, spooking and annoying him even further with fake affections, "Okay then, will everyone take out their science books and open them to chapter-"

"We ain't got none." Riley said, raising his hand after the effect.

"That's fine, just share with those around you." the instructor said, "Ichigo, please share your book with Rukia. Keigo and Mizuiro with Riley and Cindy."

"Why the hell are you three at my school?" Ichigo whispered loudly as Rukia gave him a fake smile.

"Can I please share your book with you?" Rukia asked politely as she held out her hand, a message written on her palm.

_Shut the hell up_!_ Don't ask questions_._ Don't make a scene_._ Inside the infirmary_._ Explanations will be given_.

Ichigo looked up at Rukia after reading the message with his expression wary as he nodded slowly. Rukia flashed him another fake smile as she sat down next to him, acting like an innocent and naïve schoolgirl.

* * *

As Ichigo walked through the school corridors, he found himself worrying more and more about what could and would be revealed. His hand slowly gripped at the door to the infirmary, his heart pounding as he thought for a second that the door would explode with his opening it, just to keep him quiet as the only one that knew the truth to what really happened last night.

"Oh, young Ichigo Kurosaki. Please, come in." a soft voice called as Ichigo slowly opened the door, seeing Jazmine with a clipboard and a pen as she sat in a wheeled-chair with the curtain drawn back to the nearest sick station of her infirmary.

Ichigo came in, closing the door behind him as he glanced to the side where he saw Rukia drinking a glass of orange juice with a wondrous expression and Riley eating a sandwich while trying to scowl around his bites.

"Your late, Kurosaki." another voice snapped from behind the curtains as Ichigo stared at them. The curtains flung themselves back to reveal the afro-headed Huey Freeman and the severe expression of Ming Long-Do.

"Late?" Ichigo echoed in confused annoyance, "The message only said to be here."

"And yet you still find a way to show up so fashionably late." Ming said, her expression strict, "Anyways, there's no time to waste."

"So what the hell do you people want anyway?" Ichigo demeaned, feeling his nerves getting to him but also making him a little braver.

"You, Ichigo Kurosaki." Huey said, his voice devoid of tone.

"Me?" Ichigo asked incredulously.

"Yes, you, dimwit!" Ming snapped impatiently, "You are now a Soul Reaper due to the transfer of power from little Rukia here onto you last night."

"And now thanks to you, she's kinda stuck here for the time being until she can actually become a full-fledged Soul Reaper again." Cindy said from her spot on floor by Jazmine's desk where Ichigo blinked, having missed her in her hiding spot.

"Its true…" Rukia said dejectedly, "I can only use a few Kido spells, so I'm basically useless. Anyway, I will be personally teaching you how to become a Soul Reaper."

"And these guys?" Ichigo asked as Huey scowled at him.

"We're here to make sure you do your job; both you _and_ Rukia." Huey said, crossing his arms, "However, we'll help out every now and then while also making detailed reports of anything and everything you do related your status now as a Soul Reaper."

"In other words, you will be learning how to take out any Hollow that come at you from both Rukia and them while we also observe your life from this point forward." Jazmine summed things up nicely, "Now then, if you go with-"

"Wait a minute!" Ichigo said suddenly, "It sounds to me like you're asking me to give up my life to become some kinda demon-slayer."

"Not all your life," Cindy said, "Ya know… just, like, a really big chunk of it."

"So essentially, yes." Ming said uncaringly as she shrugged.

"Well, in that case… HELL NO!" Ichigo shouted as Riley and Cindy got up from their places while Huey handed Ming a glove. Jazmine sighed as Rukia stepped forward to get a closer look at something. Riley and Cindy moved to stand by Jazmine, who began to tap her pen to the desk as Ming slipped the glove on.

"Okay, we'll put things in a different perspective." Huey said as Ming pulled the glove on tightly, making it snap at her skin.

"We can either do this the easy way…" Jazmine said as she smiled kindly at young Ichigo.

"Or the hard way." Ming said, snapping the glove again as she narrowed her eyes at the orange-haired teenage boy.

"Uh, how about neither!" Ichigo replied, running a hand through his spiky orange locks. "Look, I helped you guys out once last night, but now you're asking me to give up my life. As much as I like the idea of kickin' ass and takin' names, I'm gonna have to say no. It's just not who I am at the core, ya know?"

"Yeah, but you were the one who got in the way." Rukia accused as she pointed a finger at Ichigo. "If you had just stayed bound and let me take care of things, everything would have turned out fine and we wouldn't be standing here!"

"You suck at your job, woman!" Ichigo shouted back, "You couldn't even hear the damn monster, and it was right outside my house! It made a giant fucking hole in my living room before you even noticed it, and even then I had to tell you it was there!"

"I could have handled it!" Rukia replied, more so to her superiors than Ichigo as she nervously glanced between them.

"You dumbass midget, it attacked all three members of my family while you were up in my bedroom binding me down and molesting me with your stupid marker!" Ichigo shouted as Jazmine's eyes went wide and Huey arched a brow. Cindy and Riley couldn't stop snickering while Ming gave a very nervous Rukia a piercing look. "In fact, I think I'm been scarred for life thanks to those suckish drawing of yours. You had time to sit there and explain your job when you should have found that damn monster- Hollow- _whatever the hell those things are called_!"

"Is what he says true, Rukia?" Huey asked as Rukia snapped her attention away from glaring at Ichigo to gape in fear of Huey, who looked severely cross while Ming stood at his side looking just about as angry.

"Sir, in all the time that was happening I was not able to sense the Hollow at all. It was only when he pointed out the beast was near was I finally capable of feeling it's presence."

"Have I not taught you that, for we, there are more senses than the spiritual?" Huey asked in a deadly calm as he shut his eyes, making Rukia tremble in fear. "For a Soul Reaper, every sense is an essential tool to be sharpened through training and usage. If any one of them is lacking, it can spell disaster for the unfortunate officer… one such as you are now, Rukia."

"Please, forgive me." Rukia bowed as Ichigo gaped in surprise at just how meek and submissive the rave-haired girl was to these people, especially to this afro-haired guy.

"If not for this young man, you might have an entire family's blood on your hands." Huey said impassively, and that seemed to be the final nail in the coffin for Rukia as she choked on her own gasp of air. Ichigo moved to her side, not sure why as she looked so shell-shocked while the afro-headed guy stood like a cold pillar. Ichigo was about to yell at the guy, but Jazmine beat him to it and for that Ichigo respected her a little more than anyone else in the room.

"That was far too far, Huey! What you just said was _way_ out of line!" Jazmine berated her companion as Huey slowly and deliberately opened his wine-colored eyes to gaze upon the now fiery woman.

"I was merely stating facts, Jazmine." Huey said impassively as he glanced over Rukia, who was being hovered over by a concerned Ichigo.

"Even I know that shit was cold as ice, Huey." Riley said with a shake of his head while Cindy merely shrugged.

"His words held truth," Ming stepped in, "And if Kuchiki here is so shaken by them, then it should stand as a lesson to her; the job of a Soul Reaper is serious business and never to be taken lightly, even when you believe the enemy is not around."

"Ah, Ming, shut yo ass up. And for you, Huey; that shit was a really low blow." Cindy said, moving over to where Jazmine was now rubbing circles in Rukia's back. "Come on, Jazzy, we go take her somewhere for some girl time. Ming, you take care of the kid."

"Fine." Ming said, sounding resigned to the task as she gazed at Jazmine and Cindy's retreating forms with Rukia between them.

"Want any help?" Riley asked as Ming shook her head.

"No, I can handle this." Ming said as she snapped her glove once again before training her eyes on Ichigo.

The orange-haired teen didn't even know why, but he turned around and began to run for the door the three women had left through when he saw Ming's eyes fall upon him like a lion after a gazelle. He saw watched television! He knew what happened when lions caught sight of their prey!

"Where you going, Strawberry?" Riley asked deviously as he slammed the door shut with Ichigo just inches in front of it.

"Oh shit," Ichigo muttered in fright as he saw his main escape point closed off. However, knowing there was a window on the other side of the room gave him hope. If he could just turn around, and-

But he never got the chance to even glance about when he turned on heel in order to make a mad dash toward the window. The moment his body had spun in place was the moment a hand slammed into his chin like an incredible uppercut. In fact, Ichigo thought that he might have had the wind knocked out of him as he could hardly feel any sensation at all before a certain degree of weightlessness settled over him. He felt light, as though he had just gotten out a pool after being underwater for hours. He felt strangely free, as though all the world around him had disappeared into a wonderfully blissful background.

… at least until the back of his head collided with the door…

"Ow! Dammit!" Ichigo cursed as he rubbed the back of his head and stepped away from the door.

"The separation was successful." Ming stated as Huey nodded, his arms crossed.

"Separation?" Ichigo asked, scowling as he stepped to Ming. "What the hell did you-?"

But Ichigo's words stopped short as his second step forward was met with his foot hitting something. Looking down to see what had been on the floor, Ichigo felt a sense of horror fill him as he gazed down at his body. His freshly limp body.

"AHH!" Ichigo screamed, pointing down at his corpse while Riley dug a pink in his ear.

"Damn this nigga is loud…" Riley muttered as Ichigo looked up at Ming with wide brown eyes.

"What the hell did you do to me, you crazy bitch?!" Ichigo as Ming gave him a dispassionate glance before returning her gaze upon his human body.

"I forcibly separated your soul from you body," Ming stated so casual Ichigo could have mistook her tone for one used in friendly conversation. "You are now within your Shinigami form."

"Put me back in my body!" Ichigo demeaned as Ming arched a brow, pulling a cell phone from her pants' pocket and dialing away on it.

"No, I don't think so." Ming said simply, "You and I now have work to do."

"What the hell-?"

"There are Hollows about, and it is your job to slay them, Ichigo Kurosaki." Ming said quite sternly as Ichigo felt that he should snap into a salute the way she was looking at him. He refrained himself from doing so, however, because they were effectively making his life hell by forcing him to do this stupid demon-slayer job.

"And if I refuse?" Ichigo asked tersely, his eyes narrowing as his fingers itched to grasp a hold of the oversized sword strapped to his back.

"Just follow us," Riley said from where he was already sitting in the open windowsill, "and then you'll see what happens when niggas don't do the job."

Ichigo wasn't sure he wanted to be in the same room as the three people around him, so he was damn sure he didn't want to be whisked away to wherever the hell they wanted to drag him. He was also be sure that if he followed them, then the day would end with his being dead in a dumpster right next to his now lifeless body.

Soul Reapers didn't seem a far cry from the Mafia as far as Ichigo could tell, after all…

* * *

Against his better judgment, he had followed Riley and Ming along outside the infirmary window and down the street. The one named Huey had pulled out a phone much the same as the one Ming had while it vibrated and rang in his hand. He took the call, telling them to go along without him as Ming and Riley didn't waste a beat.

Now here Ichigo was, walking so casually down the street with Riley still in the Karakura High School uniform and Ming in what looked like an expensive red and yellow tracksuit. He glanced up and down the street, barely a soul in sight as Ichigo found that theory about his ending up dead in a dumpster somewhere a bit more believable by the second. Maybe they would at least carry him to the hospital's dumpsters where things were always kept sterile and crisp, even the dumpsters.

What was the director's name? Ishada or Ishuka…?

Oh well, it didn't matter so long as he didn't end up behind a fast food joint. Now that would be disgusting _and_ demoralizing…

"We're here." Ming said as Ichigo turned his attention back to the front of their little excursion and away from the burger joint they had passed on the way while suppressing a shudder.

Ichigo saw that they were now in the local park near the school. He couldn't honestly tell why they had brought him there, but if they were planning to kill him, then the kid playing in the park was going to die too for being a witness to the crime.

Yes, there was an innocent six year-old all by his lonesome as he happily played on the swing set with not a care in the world. It made Ichigo wonder where the boy's parents were, but he supposed that if the boy had parents like Ichigo's own father, he'd run away from home- or even school- to play in the park, if only to get away from the stupidity.

"Why are we here?" Ichigo asked skeptically as he crossed his arms in stared hard at the back of Ming's head. She had yet to turn to him, and Riley had continued walking until he settled himself down on a bench. It was only then that Ichigo noticed that Riley had been carrying his lunch all the way, and was now eating it with gusto while also flicking small green and yellow bits from it with mumbled words of disgust.

"Watch." Ming commanded as she gestured toward the small boy who was playing freely.

If the woman's big idea was to make Ichigo greatly miss his childhood, then she was succeeding as Ichigo watched the boy be free for a few minutes. The boy seemed so happy, so carefree that Ichigo actually found himself smiling as the boy laughed to himself and continued to swing peacefully. It made Ichigo consider, not for the first time, becoming a father just to see his own children look so happy with such simple things as going higher on a swing. He wondered briefly if he'd make a good father, because despite his own father's weird antics, Ichigo couldn't think of anyone else he'd want as a dad. Would he be a good dad? Would he someday become crazy with joy and attack his own son the way his father did to him? Would he be obsessively loud and cheerful?

As these questions flowed through his head, Ichigo continued to watch the young boy in a peaceful silence. Then he noticed something. There was a puddle near the kid, which mysterious began to shake as if a earthquake was coming. Ichigo felt himself turning around as he couldn't explain why. It was like something was screaming for him to take notice of something behind him. So as he turned around ever slowly, Ichigo saw the last thing he wanted to see since last night's events. Here before him was another Hollow appearing out of nowhere, looking over at the small kid with hunger evident in it's animalistic drooling.

The evil beast crept ever closer to the small child as Ichigo began to panic. Turning to the two who had dragged him here, Ichigo found that Ming was still engrossed in her phone and Riley hadn't even bothered to look up from his lunch while the Hollow creeped right past him.

"Oh, goddamnit!" Ichigo yelled as he unsheathed his sword and ran after the Hollow.

Ichigo grumbled obscenities under his breath as he ran at the Hollow, jumping high as his foot came down on the Hollow's back. The demon's body slammed onto the ground with a crash as the child looked up from his playing to see Ichigo standing tall atop the beast's back. Gawking at Ichigo's awesomeness while the orange-haired teen hopped off the Hollow, the child ran up to Ichigo with amazement dancing in his eyes.

"Get outta here, kid." Ichigo said over his shoulder as he unsheathed his sword halfway to stop the strike the Hollow made at his back. He then turned to the kid, giving the boy a small nudge toward where Riley was still eating obliviously.

The small boy looked over Ichigo's shoulder to see the Hollow rising up, and nodded fearfully as he ran toward where the guy was eating a strange bento.

Ichigo turned back to the Hollow as he gave the creature a glare while fully unleashing his sword from it's confides and held it to the beast's face. The Hollow gave a roar as it raised one of it's legs to attack Ichigo, who dodged almost lazily as he found the giant monster very slow.

However, Ichigo had to roll out of the way as two other claws came down much quicker than Ichigo had expected. Using his large sword, Ichigo cut away the Hollow's nearest arm before it could react. The Hollow gave a pitiful scream as it grew furious, attacking Ichigo with much fury and haste.

Ichigo blocked a strike with the flat side of his sword as he twisted the weapon in his hand, pushing it forward with his other as he used the maneuver to chop off the attacking limb. Leaping out of the way as the Hollow attacked at his side with a scythe-sweep, Ichigo skidded to a stop with both hands gripping the hilt of his sword.

"Bring it, bastard." Ichigo said as the Hollow roared it's rage while charging at the orange-haired warrior.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes as he watched the Hollow draw closer, holding his sword at the ready. When it was close enough, Ichigo thrust his sword through the Hollow's leg and into the ground. Then he scowled deeply as the beast cried out. Cocking his fist back, Ichigo glared.

"Get lost!" Ichigo shouted as he punched his fist straight through the Hollow's bone mask. Pulling his fist free of the Hollow's face, Ichigo took up his sword with a firm jerk and held it high before ending the monster's existence with a single sword diagonal slash. The Hollow crumbled to the ground, dead as Ichigo swiped his sword through the air to remove the black inky mess from his weapon before sheathing it.

* * *

"Look, I think I get what you were trying to do here." Ichigo said reluctantly as he walked over to where Ming was, now standing beside Riley as the dark-skinned teen shared the green and yellow bits of his meal with the little boy.

"You saved the boy." Ming stated flatly as she was still on her phone. Who the hell was she texting that much?!

"Yeah, I did." Ichigo said, glancing at the smiling boy. "I know that it's your job to keep things like Hollows away from people, and I appreciate you guys saving me and my family from the eventual horde that arrived before I was knocked out."

"But still you do not understand one thing." Ming said, snapping her phone shut as her stern gaze landed on Ichigo while she held up her index finger. "We, the Shinigami of Soul Society, work for life. Essentially, our jobs _are_ our lives. We exist to do work like what you just did, and we must dedicate all that we are to the job… at any _and_ _all_ costs."

"Yeah, nigga. This shit ain't no joke." Riley said, handing off his bento to the boy as he got up from the bench, "In the Rukon District, there are hundreds of kids like this one, and some even get devoured by Hollows."

"Wait, those things are even in Heaven!" Ichigo's eyes were wide at the thought of monster within the final resting place of all good souls.

Riley and Ming exchanged a look, Riley's brow quirked high while Ming looked skeptical.

"Little Rukia obviously did not explain the Soul Society to him." Ming said as Riley nodded.

"Basically, man, Hollows can invade the Soul Society, but they don't come there nearly as much as they do here." Riley said as Ichigo nodded dumbly, still reeling from the thought that demons could go and eat good people in Heaven.

"But that's where we come in." Ming said, "It's our job to protect and patrol the Rukongai from any threat; both internal and external. And so just being in the area and deciding to be helpful isn't our way, nor is it enough. A true Shinigami must act when you needed, not just when it's convenient."

"Being a Shinigami is about sacrifice." Ming continued as Riley placed a hand on Ichigo's shoulder.

"Yeah, and even with my appreciation for you guys, that last bit still sounds kinda stupid." Ichigo said as both Riley and Ming narrowed their eyes at him. Ichigo shrugged off Riley's hand as he continued on.

"You can't just go around sacrificing yourself. That just ain't smart." Ichigo said as Riley blinked for a second, mistaking Ichigo for someone less because of his last words and tone.

"Then what do you suggest?" Ming asked scathingly as she crossed her arms under her breasts. The kid came up to Riley, giving him his bento box back as Riley tossed it onto the ground over his shoulder.

"Survive and go on. You can't make a difference with anything if you go around sacrificing yourself every time you get into a jam." Ichigo said, but then sighed as he scratched at his scalp. "But, I'm not a complete bastard," Ichigo went on as he patted the young boy on the head, "so I'm going to help you guys do this after all… at least for now."

Riley and Ming exchanged another look, each not too concerned with Ichigo's final choice of words while Ichigo bent down and spoke to the young boy in front of them.

"Well that's fine for now, Kurosaki." Ming said as she and Riley shared one last look before turning their attention to Ichigo. "However, if we find any… problems with your part in this agreement, then we'll be forced to take matters into our own hands."

"Yeah, whatever." Ichigo said, not too much caring about the woman's way of saying they'd kill him if he went back on his word.

Because honestly, these Shinigami were really starting to sound like the damn Mafia…

"Now all that needs to be done is sending this young spirit to the Soul Society." Ming said, gesturing to the boy as Ichigo finally took notice of the chain hanging from the middle of the kid's chest.

"Huh, oh well, I need to start paying attention to these kinda things." Ichigo said as he tried to recall how Rukia had gotten rid of the soul that had been following him around yesterday.

Unsheathing his sword, Ichigo smiled down at the boy as he put the butt of the sword's hilt to the kid's forehead.

"Kick some ass in Heaven for me, kid." Ichigo said as the boy smiled up at him while disappearing in a grand show of light.

* * *

"Glad to see you're up to the job, Ichigo." a voice behind Ichigo said as Ichigo got up from his kneeling position and turned around only to see the other girls behind him.

"Yo," Ichigo greeted, "Feeling any better?"

"Idiot, I wasn't ill." Rukia snapped as Ichigo gave her an annoyed look.

"Those two took you away because you looked like you were about to cry… or throw-up… or both…" Ichigo said, gesturing to Jazmine and Cindy.

"You're imagining things." Rukia denied as she looked away from Ichigo and toward Riley and Ming. "Madam Ming, when do you wish to begin his training regiment?"

"I don't think he needs one." a voice behind them all said as they turned to see Huey coming from the other end of the small park while snapping his cell phone shut. "From what I've seen, he handled himself well. His instincts are up to par, at least."

"Yes, but we don't need him dying due to some minor overconfidence on his behalf." Ming responded as Huey reached their group.

"Perhaps a few sparring rounds will show little Ichigo the way to go." Jazmine suggested quietly as Huey and Ming seemed to greatly consider this. Ichigo got the impression that Jazmine wasn't to keen on fighting of any kind, and that when she was in favor of the violent act, those around took heed to her words.

"Yes, that'll do." Huey said, then looked to Ming for her opinion as the Asian woman nodded firmly.

"Yes, Jazmine is right. In addiction they'll have the added benefit of giving us a light workout." Ming said as Ichigo felt that her words were a jab at his pride.

Oh, he would show her. Just because he never wanted to beat Tatsuki to a pulp didn't mean he had the same bias toward every woman in his life.

And also because Ichigo got the feeling that, if he didn't take her seriously, this Ming woman would kill him before he even realized he'd hit the ground…

"Now then, let us commence with the ass-kicking."


	3. Something Wicked, This Brother's Love

**Chapter 3: Something Wicked, This Brother's Love**

* * *

A ghost stood in midair, watching over a beautiful auburn haired girl as she answered history questions. The ghost smiled softly at the girl, turning to leave when the young woman was called out of the room to get ready for dinner.

The ghost had been so afraid. So very afraid. He had felt fear nearly all his life, but his greatest so far had been that the girl he was watching so openly would not have been able to cope with his passing.

"_Please don't leave me_! _Please_!"

Those had been her words, but now he saw that she was finally doing well on her own. The girl had grown into a lovely and kind young woman, had made good friends, and was even doing well in her courses.

And he had been so worried about her ever since his death…

"How long do you plan to watch over her?" a dispassionate voice washed over the ghost as he turned around to see the afro-haired man sitting at the balcony once again. His maroon eyes spoke of much intellect, and a clarity found only in the most perceptive of individuals.

Those wine red eyes were also locked on his ghostly form, watching him critically and analytically as though he were some sort of insect on display in the local museum.

"Just until I'm sure she's safe…" the ghost muttered as the maroon-eyed man gave a sigh.

"You should pass on in peace…" the guy muttered as he looked down at the suburbia which surrounded them. "She seems to have good friends in this place."

"But her friends are only kids themselves." the ghost argued as the afro-ed man looked up at him sharply.

"You'd be surprised what kids can do now-a-days," the man said, "Besides, if you hang around like this in the open for too often, then you might get picked off by a Hollow."

"Hollow?" the ghost echoed in bewilderment.

"A monster of animalistic intent." the man answered, hopping off the balcony railing as he headed back inside.

"Wait, what's your name?" the ghost asked as the man paused at the sliding door into the apartment.

"Huey. Huey Freeman." the man, Huey Freeman, said as he glanced back over his shoulder at the now smiling ghost.

"I am Sora Inoue," the ghost greeted back with a small smile before he bowed in midair, "and thank you and your friend for watching over my sister as you have."

"No problem." Huey said, shrugging as he went inside the apartment without another moment wasted.

Outside, Sora Inoue smiled as he sang to himself. It was a song he had loved while he was alive, having sung it as a lullaby to his little sister whenever she couldn't sleep or had nightmares. A tear rolled down his cheek as he sung lowly to himself with nary another soul to hear his soft words.

"He's still out there?" Jazmine asked as Huey came in, only acknowledging her question with a grunt as he went to get started on dinner.

"Who's out where?" Orihime asked as she came back into the dinning room after putting her books away for school tomorrow.

"No one, don't worry," Jazmine said gently as she turned her attention to the picture resting within the open shrine. "Now go and speak with your brother while I set the table."

"Alright," Orihime said, knowing that it was near pointless to argue with the people who had been so helpful while barging into her life.

* * *

In the midst of night, two monsters appeared behind the ghost of Sora Inoue, who himself was seating atop the building across from his younger sister's place while watching her sleep. The two monsters grabbed the ghostly sibling with their tentacles, laughing manically as fresh drool running from their mouths down their chins. Sora struggled as best he could, screaming for help as the monsters reeled him in closer.

"Wait," a deep, menacing voice commanded as the two beasts paused in their hunger while Sora saw and felt a shadow fall over him.

"Yeah, boss?" one of the smaller monsters asked as the one behind Sora and out of the ghost boy's sight held a grin in his voice while he spoke again.

"I believe it would be better if I were to consume this morsel's soul." the deep voice said as the two monsters- Hollows, if Sora was correct from what Huey Freeman had said to him not but several hours ago- looked at each other in hesitation. The larger Hollow behind Sora growled demonically, sending a shiver up Sora's spine and a spark of freight through the brother's soul as the two monsters quickly let Sora go and backed away to a respectfully submissive distance.

That was when Sora spun around, ready to duck pass his captor and phase through walls if he needed to. Anything he could do just to stay in a living state a little longer. Anything to keep these… theses things away from his sister.

Anything just to see his sister one last time…

But it was when he made the mistake of looking up into the face of the commanding monster that Sora Inoue felt despair grip him as the behemoth towered over him with a bone white grin.

There was no hope… No way to escape the gaze of this leviathan… All he could do was scream.

"NOOO! AAAAHHHHH!"

* * *

"Huh?" Jazmine jumped awake at the sound of a bellowing screech of terror.

"Are you okay?" Huey was already up in a pair of pajama bottoms and a muscle shirt.

"Yeah, I'm fine…" Jazmine muttered as Huey came to kneel at her bedside.

Jazmine turned to her friend, the sheets of her bed clutched in her hands as she hugged them up to her neck. "Did you feel that?"

"Yeah," Huey murmured as he let his gaze drift from Jazmine's wellbeing to the window outside where now all things were quiet. His line of vision stayed on the outside world which existed just beyond the peaceful home of Orihime Inoue. He never blinked, but his eyes narrowed as he spoke what he could still sense like the faint ripples in a pond.

"A bond has been broken…"

* * *

Ichigo was getting a little pissed off with Rukia and her buddies. The problem, you might be asking yourself?

"YOU DAMN BRATS WILL PAY FOR THIS!"

…yeah, that was the problem…

Ichigo's face held a look of both annoyance and impassion while Riley and Cindy simply looked uncaring as they slouched against the back wall. The four of them, Ichigo, Riley, Cindy, and Rukia were all present in front of the gym teacher, who happened to be a rather large muscular man with a rather small mustache. The man wore sports clothing, and was yelling at them to the point where Ichigo wondered if the man's veins would suddenly come bursting from his mouth.

You see, all four "students"- Ichigo used the term lightly since Rukia was a fake, Riley did absolutely no work in any of his classes, and Cindy's only work was in art class where she drew gangs and guns- were currently in the principal's office. The principal himself looked somewhat apprehensively at them with his secretary at his side.

Ichigo could only hope this travesty would end soon without the muscle-bound idiot blowing his head apart from so much shouting…

Unfortunately, his prayers were actually answered…

"Oh, please excuse us, Torah-sensei…" turning their heads to the weeping act that was Rukia Kuchiki, Ichigo nearly snorted in palpable disbelief when he and the others in the room found the small raven-haired woman dapping at the corner of her eyes with a handkerchief as she continued to sob. Then she continued, her voice laced with false worry and sorrow, "It's all my fault, good sirs. I knew my cousins were coming from the United States of America, and that they won't be able to make the switch in cultures too soon. I should have let them stay at home to rest and explore this wonder city, but I wanted so much to bring them here on my first days in class at this fantastic school… All because of my fear to being lonely in a new place…!" Rukia then sobbed a bit more for good measure, Riley and Cindy staring at the little woman in utter disbelief while Ichigo clenched his jaw to keep it from dropping to the floor. "It's all m-my f-fault…! Had I not been such a horrible cousin with such…" it was here that Rukia sniffled like she was gonna start leaking snot everywhere, "…egoistic whims… then my cousins and Kurosaki-san wouldn't have been in this mess…"

Ichigo wanted to laugh, because it would take a real dumbass to fall for any of that bullshit acting which both Ichigo and Rukia's two "cousins" knew it was…

"Oh, come on, Kuchiki, please don't cry!" the gym teacher pleaded while looking as though he was seconds away from crying as well. Ichigo heard Riley mutter a comment under his breath, but Cindy elbowed him in the gut to keep him quiet while Ichigo simply stared incredulously.

Then the gym teacher, Mr. Torah, turned to Riley and Cindy, Rukia's so-called "cousins" as he gave them a much sterner look than he had been giving Rukia. "Okay, Freeman and McPhearson… I guess that by what Rukia said you two must be having trouble with the sudden adjustment to our ways, what with coming all the way here from America after all. I'm sure the schedule change must have exhausted you, and all the stark differences in culture must not be too nice a change either."

"Whateva, nigga," Riley shrugged as Cindy elbowed him again and nodded quickly while Riley grabbed his stomach.

"Yes, thank you for your sympathy, Torah-sensei." Cindy said, though unlike Rukia her voice took on a very bland tone that made Ichigo believe she might have been scripted to say what she was. "And Riley here hasn't been feeling to well, either. He's been complaining about a stomach ache."

"That's because yo ass-!" and for opening his mouth, Riley received another blow to his gut before he finally dropped to his knees clutching his abused tummy.

"Oh my…" the principal said as he adjusted his glasses, "Will you be already, my boy?"

"Peachy…" Riley said, but only after a glance up at Cindy.

"And this wonderful place is proving to be such a great country with good people like you all here." Cindy continued as Ichigo could swear her voice was practically salivating with sarcasm. He was very patriotic, but he could clearly see the blond woman was only using the Japanese ego to get where she wanted, even when her tone didn't reflect it. He wondered if he'd ever again fall for a foreigner's false admiration of Japan.

The gym teacher nodded, taking in all the lies with a deep breath before sighing it out. After finally getting Rukia to calm down from her hysterics, said girl gave her "cousins" and Ichigo a very discreet thumbs-up complete with a sneaky grin while the gym teacher spoke to the principal.

"Well then, since this was all just an accidental culture miscommunication, I guess I'll let you two go," the principal said, casting a sharp look at Riley and Cindy, "However, I don't want any repeats of this again. _Ever_. Am I understood?"

Riley wisely kept his mouth shut as he nodded silently while Cindy and Rukia gave a small bow to the principal.

"Thank you, sir." the two said, though the stark contrast from Cindy's near monotone to Rukia's chirp chirping was almost enough to make Ichigo lose it.

"Good, then you four are dismissed." the principal said, turning in his chair as he waved a dismissive hand at them.

The four nodded and soon left the office with Rukia leading their little marry band while Ichigo brought up the rear in a grumble. They each ignored the whispers and stares after hearing of the accident until they were finally out of the school.

Ichigo, naturally, was the first to speak his mind, "How the hell do you people get away with shooting our gym teacher?!"

"Cause we got it like that," Riley said smoothly while sliding his hands deep into his pockets, "What, nigga? You jealous?"

"It makes no sense…" Ichigo muttered, more to himself than the others as Cindy clicked her teeth.

"If you had lived in our hood growing up, muthafuckas would shoot you just 'cause of yo hair color… unless you were Jazmine." Cindy said, pulling a face. "Then they asses would've gave you _flowers_ and _candy_ and shit…"

"You _shot_ our gym teacher!" Ichigo said, if only to show them that it was the issue and not whatever reason was behind it.

"The nigga looked at me funny," Riley said as though that was the answer he most commonly used for when he did dumb things.

"That's _not_ the point!" Ichigo declared.

"Chill out, Berry Boy." Cindy said as Ichigo's eyebrow twitched, "It was only an aerosol-gun. Nothing more than being stung with a metal pellet."

"That still doesn't make it any better!" Ichigo yelled as Cindy began to find the boy a bit too worked up. "You brought a handgun to school! You could go to jail for stuff like that!"

"And what jail go hold us back?" Riley asked coolly, raising a brow as Ichigo was reminded of the afro-haired guy.

"My foot up your asses, that's which." a voice broke through Ichigo's rising temper at the smug thuggish teen while he and the others rounded the street only to come face-to-face with Huey and Jazmine, who were carrying shopping bags filled with groceries.

"Yo, what up Hue-man?" Cindy tried as Huey narrowed his eyes at the group.

"You're supposed to be living a low profile, not shooting your instructors." Huey hissed as Jazmine didn't even seem fazed by their actions or their nonchalant attitudes about it when Riley shrugged and Cindy flipped a blond braided ponytail over her shoulder.

"Nigga, we do what we want, when we want, how we want. Get up off of these nuts." Riley said as Huey narrowed his eyes even further, Ichigo only just realizing that Huey was now actually glaring at them unlike just moments before. Ichigo felt his breath catch in his throat, as though he were suddenly pulled underwater when Riley and Huey locked glaring orbs and continued to square-off against one another.

"Nigga, you wanna start something?" Riley asked in a hiss as he geared back his fist while Huey's coldly impassive face only twitched with a small smirk as he slid back his left foot.

"Don't talk so big, _young_ Reezy." Huey shot back coolly as Riley seemed offended by the way Huey had called him his nickname.

Right when the deep sea feeling was near enough to bring Ichigo to his knees and grasping at his throat, the gods proved themselves existent. The pressure suddenly disappeared when a voice cried out just down the street from where Huey and Jazmine had come from. It was when Huey and Riley broke eye contact and looked down the street in shock that Ichigo began choking and retching for air while Rukia appeared winded as well. The others, however, didn't seem affected at all by whatever force had been bearing down on Ichigo and Rukia with the weight of a pool as they all exchanged looks with Huey and Jazmine.

"Hey guys, wait up! Hiya, Ichigo!"

"Ori-Orihime!" Ichigo wheezed as he forgot his rapid breathing in favor of looking up at his classmate and checking to be sure she was okay.

Rushing the down the street in a hurry, Ichigo and the others saw none other than the incredibly kind and ditzy Orihime Inoue with a plastic shopping bag in hand whilst she waved at them as though she hadn't seen them all in many years. She ran up to meet Ichigo with a smile, but then took notice of Rukia beside him.

"Umm… Kuchiki-san?" the genuinely confused girl asked as Rukia gave her a critical look.

"Yeah, and just who the hell-?" Rukia started, but Ichigo stopped her as he bent down and whispered in her ear.

"You dumbass, you really do suck at your job. That's Orihime Inoue. She's our classmate, idiot!" Ichigo informed the suckish Shinigami while Riley and Cindy greeted the auburn-haired girl casually.

Rukia gave Orihime a once over glance before she put on a bright smile. She pulled the hems of her skirt into her hands and gave Orihime a rather old-fashion curtsey bow, "Oh, greetings, Inoue-san." the small raven-haired girl said rather cheerfully while Orihime blinked at her as though she were crazy.

"U-Umm… greetings, Kuchiki-san…" the ditzy girl returned, giving the same curtsey, albeit a bit awkwardly. Ichigo noticed how, even when done so uncomfortably, Orihime still gave an air of grace in her motions. He figured the girl really lived up to her namesake…

"Her name mean princess?" Riley asked in a whisper as he leaned over to Cindy, who nodded. "The fuck is wrong with these people?"

Narrowing his eyes, Riley gave the girl a critical look, taking notice of the pair of flower-shaped hairpins holding the auburn-haired girl's hair back from her face. He couldn't help but stare at the hairpins, feeling a strange sensation in the pit of his stomach as he took in their appearance.

"Hey, you guys were shopping?" Ichigo asked as Huey and Jazmine stopped fussing over Orihime while the girl herself nodded to his question.

Then she smiled… and took out a leek, spinning it as she happily chirped, "Yep, it's dinner! I bought leek, butter, bananas, and bean jam jelly too! Heh, he, he!"

"_That_ is _not_ dinner." Huey said so flatly that even Ichigo could hear Orihime's spirit crack like shattered glass. "_This_ is dinner." he continued, holding up the bags he was carrying while Jazmine merely smiled at both him and Orihime, as if to say that they were both right.

This whole scene made Ichigo want to chuckle nervously or sweat drop, because he knew that Orihime would find some way to get her fill of weird foods when the afro-haired guy and his nurse friend weren't looking.

He could only hope that she'd be near the clinic or the hospital when she did in order to have her stomach pumped…

"Hey, Little Princess, what happened to your leg?" Cindy asked as Ichigo found the blonde must have liked to give other people nicknames. However, once he too noticed the big bruise on Orihime's leg, he grew concerned.

Because there was no way that kind of mark was made by another human.

"She got hit by a car." Huey stated as though they were talking about the weather, and not what could be labeled a near-death experience.

Ichigo wanted to bellow why that was said so casually, but reframed from doing so as he quirked an eyebrow at Orihime's bruise.

"Umm… don't you guys think that's reason enough for her to visit my family's clinic…? Even if my dad's kinda a perv…" Ichigo as a way of telling the auburn-haired girl to be much more careful with her ditzy-self, but muttered the last part to himself.

"Huey's over-exaggerating." Jazmine said with a hand on her hip, "She was _almost_ hit by a car."

"Oh yeah, that's much better…" Ichigo mumbled sarcastically while Jazmine glanced at him, and he felt his spine straighten when the woman's gentle emerald eyes cut sharply at him.

Orihime, however, was blushing at hearing Ichigo as what she deemed protective of her. "The thing is… I didn't feel the car hit me, but by the time Huey and Jazmine got to me, the driver was already speeding off."

"I got his plate numbers." Huey said, patting his pocket as Riley grinned for some reason or another.

"Well, just be more careful, alright Orihime." Ichigo said as he raked a hand through his orange locks, "Me and Tatsuki would hate to see anything more happen to you." he added with a small smile as Orihime's face went bright red.

"Oh, yeah, I guess you're right! Thanks for the advise, Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime said as Ichigo blinked. She always called him that whenever she looked all flustered and ill. Was it a verbal-tick from sickness or something?

"Do you guys want us to walk that way with you? It wouldn't be too much trouble." Ichigo said as Orihime squeaked while Jazmine giggled girlishly and Huey scowled deeply.

"No, that'll be alright, young Ichigo." Jazmine said as Huey nodded his scowling agreement. "We'll look after Orihime, you just get yourself home."

"Alright then." Ichigo said, shrugging as he was sure that if Jazmine thought she could look after Orihime, he might as well let her. The woman was a nurse, after all.

"We go this way." Riley indicated once they saw Orihime and her two guardians off. Riley pointed toward a street Ichigo rarely ever used.

"Okay, but be careful. A creepy guy in a really old candy shop lives that way." Ichigo warned, "And then way past that are these warehouses that make all these noises."

"We like creepy," Cindy said, and then with a sway of her hips she was moving down the street while Riley followed after her with his eyes locked squarely on the sway of her hips.

"Tsk… more pervs…" Ichigo commented as he turned away from where Riley and Cindy were headed to go home to his own house.

* * *

"That Orihime Inoue is quite a weird girl… but she seems fun." Rukia commented as she waited until everyone but Ichigo was out of earshot.

Ichigo sighed, running a hand through his hair as he glanced to his side where Rukia was. "I'm actually happy she's that way… after all, she did lose her brother."

"Oh… my apologies," Rukia said politely, though there was a strange look in her eyes as she looked away from Ichigo.

After all, she knew a thing or two about brothers…

The orange-haired teen shook his head, "Don't be sorry, it happened a long time ago." he said with a sigh, "At that time I remember her, crying with her brother being carried on her shoulders. We tried to save him at our clinic… but he didn't make it before the ambulance arrived. Since then I comforted Orihime as best as I could, and even presented her to one of my friends. …At least it's good to see her smiling again, even if she had been living alone for awhile before now."

"Alone? What about her parents?" Rukia asked, making the orange-haired boy curse that slip of the tongue.

"Look, I'd rather not talk to you about that. It's her stuff, and you shouldn't interfere with her life anymore than those two friends of yours are."

"And why is that?" Rukia asked as Ichigo looked away.

"Believe me, it's not pretty…" Ichigo said softly, taking Rukia off-guard with his gentle tone of emotion.

Rukia stood silent for a moment, taking it all in, before, to Ichigo's surprise, she smiled warmly at him "You're a good person, Ichigo Kurosaki, worrying like that for your friends." Rukia said with a with a small smile that made Ichigo stutter and blush.

"Hey, I have a heart too, ya know." he muttered, feeling a bit strange about the comment.

It was like he and Rukia were fast becoming friends.

Rukia suddenly stepped forward, her eyes narrowed as she took a deep breath, "I think that's enough relaxation for me. I need to do some investigating."

"Wait, what? Just what the hell are you going off to do?" Ichigo questioned, taken by surprise at the sudden change in dynamics.

Rukia, however, was having none of that, and looked as though she could care less about his questions. "Shut it, Ichigo! I need to do some research about Hollows!"

And thus, Ichigo once again found himself wishing he could sweat-drop while Rukia rushed in no general direction before pulling out her cell phone and texting away while she nearly walked into a phone pole.

As he watched this, he gave another sigh before turning down a familiar street and heading home in order to get some rest…

However, a question did rise in his mind.

"Wait a minute, if they're all new around here, then where the hell are Rukia and that Ming-chick staying?"

* * *

"So why are they staying here again?" Tatsuki asked in a whisper as Orihime smiled across the table at her. Tatsuki occasionally came over bearing her mother's cooking, this night being beef stew while Jazmine and Huey made a dessert dish to go with it.

"Oh, Tatsuki, they're just concerned about me." Orihime reassured as Tatsuki still looked skeptical, "After I told them about my being here alone, they decided to help me out by becoming my roommates and guardians. Jazmine, the school nurse, is even paying the rent for me so I get to keep the money my aunt sends every week."

"What about the bills?" Tatsuki asked as Orihime shrugged.

"I don't know how, but Huey, the guy with the afro, is paying those." Orihime answered as Tatsuki titled her head.

"So where does he work?" Tatsuki asked, glancing back toward the kitchen.

"I don't know, but he sure does have a lot of money!" Orihime said with a ditzy expression as Tatsuki looked worried for her.

"Well just how much do you know about these people, Orihime?" Tatsuki asked as she leaned over the small table to whisper to her friend. "That guy could be a drug dealer, or with the Mafia."

"Oh Tatsuki, that's silly." Orihime replied, waving her friend off, "If he was with the Mafia, he'd be wearing a black suit and smoking expensive cigars."

"And what about him being a possible drug dealer?" Tatsuki pressed as Orihime giggled a little, but then adopted a thoughtful look.

"Well, they didn't come here with much. Nurse Jazmine was the one with all the clothes, shoes, and stuff. Mr. Huey actually got up his first day here and went out and bought himself some clothes while me and Nurse Jazmine were still asleep. So really, if he were a drug dealer, I think he's a pretty bad one if he uses his money on clothes and bills when he should be out buying more supply and stashing it in my room."

"Orihime!" Tatsuki shouted, completely caught off-guard by her friend's ability to say the last thing she wanted to hear.

"But he avoids my room like the plague, and even leaves the house when I have to shower. I don't know why, but I think he's a bit shy." Orihime said as Tatsuki sighed, giving up on trying to make the unusual girl see sense.

"Fine, fine. But if I catch even one word of that guy being a moocher or up to something shady…" Tatsuki trailed off, slamming a hand to the small table as Orihime flinched in surprise.

"Don't worry, you wouldn't." came the voice behind her as Tatsuki found a shadow looming over her. She turned, staring up at the impassively intimidating form that was Huey Freeman. She couldn't understand why his dull maroon eyes cut into her as they did.

As though his sharp gaze was actually on her soul…

"Now then, lets enjoy these treats that you've brought over, young Tatsuki." Jazmine said from beside Huey as she moved from beside the pessimist and knelt down to the small table. She placed a dish of homemade sugar cookies next to dirty dishes, which were taken from the table by Huey. When Tatsuki got up to help, Huey glanced over his shoulder and pinned her with a look that stopped her in her tracks.

"Eat. I'll handle this." Huey said dispassionately, and not even waiting for her protests, he kept walking toward the kitchen while Tatsuki dropped back to her cushion and shoved a cookie into her mouth. She nibbled at it weakly, all the while a question played through her mind.

_What the hell did he do to me_?!

"Yum!" Orihime exclaimed, devouring the last cookie with gusto as Jazmine and Huey stepped out onto the balcony to enjoy some post-meal peace.

"My mother and I worry about what you eat here all by yourself… with those people…" Tatsuki said, the half-eaten cookie she held being twiddled between her fingers.

"I eat plenty! Mr. Huey and Nurse Jazmine's cooking is really good!" Orihime said happily as Tatsuki sighed, but smiled none the less.

"Yeah, but we were worried about what you ate; back when _you_ did the cooking." Tatsuki said as Orihime huffed before puffing out her cheeks in protest. Seeing that Tatsuki was only laughing at her, she began to defend her cooking, to which Tatsuki only laughed more about.

"They're really good people, huh?" Tatsuki said in the middle of Orihime's raving as the auburn-haired girl paused.

"Yeah, they're really nice…" Orihime said, glancing back at the picture of her deceased brother, "Sorta like he was when he was here with me…"

"We should pray to him before I leave," Tatsuki said as Orihime looked disappointed about something.

"Aww, you're not sleeping over?" Orihime asked as Tatsuki shook her head.

"No, I think you're in good hands…" Tatsuki said, glancing back at where Huey and Jazmine were on the balcony, both gazing out at the newly risen moon. She may not trust the guy, but Nurse Jazmine seemed like a proper guardian-figure for Orihime. And it was obvious that Nurse Jazmine had some sort of committed relationship going with the afro-haired guy, so Tatsuki supposed there was something good about him for such a sweet woman to bother with him.

* * *

After entering his home and being greeted by her father, who used the usual method of greeting his only son with an attack, Ichigo walked up his house's stairs while ignoring all of his father's cries of pain. It was weird how his dad's bones never seemed to break whenever Ichigo twisted the man's form into resembling a pretzel.

Going up to his room, Ichigo opened his door, which was decorated with a wooden plaque in which the kanji for the number fifteen was carved. As he was settling in, his bedroom door was thrown open as his youngest sister breached his personal space.

"Ichi-nee, have you seen my dress?" Yuzu asked as Ichigo gave her a look.

"Yuzu, what if I was masturbating?" Ichigo asked bluntly as his younger sister's eyes widened beyond belief.

"Wh-What?" Yuzu choked out in embarrassment while her face turned a cherry-red color.

"What if I was masturbating?" Ichigo repeated with a bland look, "What would you have done?"

"I… You… I don't know…" Yuzu sputtered as she tried hard not to think about her brother doing inappropriate things.

"Then next time you _will_ knock, dammit." Ichigo said, pinning his sister with a firm look as she backed away to the door, closing it slightly as she moved behind it like a shield.

"Okay," Yuzu agreed, not wanting such an awkward situation to become reality if just talking about it was so embarrassing, "So, you _haven't_ seen my dress…?"

"No! Get out!" Ichigo shouted as Yuzu squeaked in surprise before slamming the door shut and running away.

Ichigo sighed as he got up from his bed, moving to put on his night clothes which consisted of a t-shirt and green pajama pants. However, just when he was about to grab his books from his backpack, Ichigo turned toward the door, feeling a strange and sudden sense of annoyance.

"There is… a disturbance in the force…" Ichigo muttered to himself right before his door was kicked open.

"Ichigo!" his father's voice called out as his foot opened Ichigo's door with a flying kick. Ichigo glared at his father while the man glared right back. "Your sisters are missing a pair of their new pajama as well as one of Yuzu's new dress. I just bought the stuff for them yesterday! Have you seen any of these items?!"

Ichigo's dad found his son's face planted in his face, the brute force of which was more than enough to send him flying backwards into the wall and into partial unconsciousness.

"What is wrong with you people today?! How the hell would I know where their clothes are when I've been at school up until little over half an hour ago, and only got home less than ten minutes ago?! Get the hell out of my room before I hit you so hard, your kidneys _implode_!" Ichigo shouted before kicking his father's limp body into the hall and slamming his door shut for good measure, locking it for even better.

Ichigo sighed again for what felt like the hundredth time that day as he got his book and sat on his bed. On his bed, he began flipping through his literature textbook as he got started on his homework. Even with the weirdness now in his life he refused to break his daily routines just to accommodate his new duties.

"Besides, I'm almost positive those other guys besides Rukia are Shinigami too." Ichigo said aloud as he closed the textbook. His memory of the attack on that night a few days ago was slowly and steadily fading into blurs and bits. He remembered at least that Riley guy with his guns blazing, and that Cindy girl with her long sniper rifle. But, if they were truly Reapers like Rukia, then why did they need him to take Rukia's place at all? Was Rukia assigned a specific portion of the town to protect, or was she a vital member of the team?

And come to think of it, was that Huey guy and Jazmine woman Soul Reapers, too? The Ming woman certainly seemed like she was with her strict nature, but he hadn't seen her since after he was officially made Rukia's substitute. Did the Ming woman lead the group? Did she only appear when things needed her supervision, or was her assigned job elsewhere?

"Ahh, this crap is giving me a headache! All these damn questions and no goddamn answers!" Ichigo growled in frustration as he clutched at his head. Just as he was about to go back to his homework, he heard a sound.

_Beep_… _Beep_. _Beep_!

"Huh?" Ichigo glanced around, "Is that… a cell phone?"

Then his closet door came banging open with a cry of, "Ichigo!"

"Whaaaaa!" Ichigo screamed in shock and surprise as Rukia had opened his closet… from the _inside_! What was even more surprising, shocking, and altogether strange was the fact that the girl was dressed in a set of yellow pajamas…

Yuzu or Karin's _new_ missing yellow pajamas at that.

"What the hell are you doing in there?!" Ichigo yelled as he pointed an accusing finger at her.

"There's no time for that! A hollow is headed this way!" Rukia snapped as Ichigo grew serious, deciding that he could momentarily forget Rukia's strange appearance in favor of the serious threat.

"A hollow?" he echoed in question, as Rukia nodded, hopping off the cod she made out of his good futon sheets. Se leapt across the room with speed that took Ichigo off-guard, slapping on the red glove that Ming woman had used before on him. Then she quite literally slapped him across his face as she ejected his soul from his body. In the spilt second his spirit was separating from his body, Rukia had wrapped her arms around his lifeless husk of a body and jumped back away from him.

It appeared that her chain of actions were just in the nick of time as an enormous hand appeared out of a dark hole in the wall and attempted to grab him in it's gigantic mitts.

Ichigo could see that this was a very large enemy from just the hand. He drew his blade, figuring that he'd have the advantage in such close-quarters combat as his room was small. The body of the hollow followed the hand, it's humanistic hand and torso coming from the dark spot in the wall as it's lower serpentine form slithered into his bedroom.

"This was not what I had in mind when I said I wanted a pet snake all those years ago…" Ichigo muttered as Rukia shouted at him.

"Aim for the head!" she yelled as she dragged Ichigo's body as far away from the fight as possible.

Ichigo nodded as he leapt and swung his enormous blade down at the Hollow's head. The Hollow, however, caught his blade barehanded before the large weapon could slice open its head. Though luckily not before the tip impacted its white mask.

"It's stronger than the last two!" Rukia yelled, more to herself than Ichigo as she dug out her phone and began pressing away at its buttons.

Ichigo and the Hollow stared each other down, each gripping an end of the sword, "It's not its strength that stopped my swing. My sword is caught in its mask." Ichigo commented as Rukia's eyes widened.

"Wh-What?" Rukia asked as Ichigo ignored her in favor of killing the beast that dared attack him at his home. Growling with effort, Ichigo tightened his grip as he pressed down on his blade even harder. As cracks began to appear in the mask, a portion around the left eye broke off completely to reveal to Ichigo the left side of what was beneath the Hollow's white bone mask.

"No… But you're… That's not possi-" Ichigo began, his going slack as he found himself peering straight into a human eye. Ichigo never got to finish what he was saying as the Hollow began to roar in agony, and its tail swung up, striking Ichigo in the side of his face as the impact sent him flying into the wall atop his bedroom desk.

"Ichigo!" Rukia yelled in concern as she returned her focus to the Hollow… which was apparently not pressing the advantage as it disappeared into the ceiling.

Seeing that the enemy was gone, Rukia allowed herself to relax for the moment while Ichigo dropped from the desk onto the floor. Rukia watched him as he gripped the chair at his study desk to pull himself up. The boy really kinda pathetic…

"I'm alright." Ichigo said, breathing heavily as he rubbed the side of his face where a bruise was sure to blossom, "But… But…"

"But what?" Rukia snapped as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Are Hollows…? Do Hollows become…? Was that thing… a person?" Ichigo asked, confused as to how to put his jumbled thoughts into words.

Rukia gritted her teeth, wishing that the boy's question had not come up, "You saw its face, didn't you?" she asked tersely, already knowing the answer.

"It was… Orihime's brother…" the orange-haired boy responded quietly.

Rukia sighed. She should have expected this, but had hoped that such a conversation wouldn't have to come so soon. It was like a parent not wanting to talk about their daughter's monthly bleeding. That last thought reminded Rukia of how she had dealt with her own puberty with her childhood friends…

How awkward that had all been growing up in Rukon…

"Hollows are Human souls that stayed in the Human world too long and lost their hearts. It is when the pain in their hearts become so unbearable they transform into the creatures you have been slaying."

"So Hollows are fallen Humans…?" Ichigo asked quietly just for the sake of clarification, his head bowed as Rukia looked away.

"Yes." Rukia admitted, but then turned back to Ichigo with a stern look, "But that's a matter we can discuss on the way. We have to get to Orihime before that Hollow does."

"What? Is that thing going after her?" Ichigo asked, forgetting his injured face as he stood up straight.

* * *

"So Orihime's brother's Hollow is going after Orihime now?" Ichigo asked as he raced across rooftops to get to Orihime's apartment.

"That's right. Now move it!" Rukia said, slapping Ichigo's arm as he carried her on his back.

"But why would he go after her?" he asked as he couldn't see any reason behind the man attacking his own sister, one which he had loved like a daughter in life.

"Have you ever heard of cases where a husband dies and then the wife dies shortly after?" Rukia asked rhetorically, "It happens because of Hollows. They kill the people they care about in life first because of their attachments to this world and the dark feelings that keep them here in the World of the Living."

"And now he's after Orihime." Ichigo concluded, now determined to get there as quickly as possible. But then he remembered something, "Wait a second. What about those two that are staying with Orihime? That Huey guy and that nurse?"

Rukia said nothing, not sure what the two would do. Huey Freeman was never one to readily display any form of sympathy toward humanity, nor toward of the Living. In this regard, his was much like Rukia's own brother.

And her brother was not one to protect the innocent when he was off duty…

But then, what about Lady Jazmine? Surely the kindly and gentle woman would intervene should any harm come to Orihime while under her charge.

Right…?

"Don't bother with their presence." Rukia said finally, barking her words harshly into Ichigo's ear. "You're the one who needs to protect her. If they choice to help, then that's good, but right now it's your job to protect Orihime from her Hollowfied brother."

"I understand that," Ichigo replied as he kept going, "I was just thinking that they wouldn't let Orihime get hurt, and they seem pretty strong with the way they carry themselves."

"Yes, but I'm not even sure they'll get involved in this matter…" Rukia muttered as Ichigo's eyes widened, but he didn't voice the doubt that had raced through his mind. Huey seemed oddly protective of Orihime, and Jazmine was too nice to let an innocent girl like Orihime come to harm.

"When we met two nights ago I described the job of a Shinigami as cleansing the Hollows." Rukia said suddenly as Ichigo leapt from rooftop to rooftop. "The Zanpakuto frees the spirit from the corrupting influence and sends it to the Soul Society. They are not destroyed. Just think of it as a different method of Konsō."

"…That's a relief," Ichigo said, a small smile on his face as relief washed over him, "I couldn't fight them at all if I thought I was killing people and damning them to an eternal oblivion."

"A true Reaper doesn't worry about such things." Rukia snapped as Ichigo sighed.

"Speaking of things Shinigami don't worry about…" Ichigo trailed off as Rukia quirked a brow.

"What do you want to know now?" Rukia asked as though she was irritated.

"When Sora, Orihime's brother… When his Hollow hit me in the face with his tail and knocked me into the wall, that should have broken half the bones in my body and at least fractured my skull." Ichigo said as Rukia remained quiet while he pressed on, "And there's no way I should be able to carry both you and my big-ass sword the way I do like this at the same time. How much has my body changed from being a Shinigami?"

"Well, that depends." Rukia said, tapping her chin, "The physical strength of Shinigami and our ability to absorb punishment is proportional to our Spiritual Energy, and… your is a high one, especially for a Human as you were…"

"And why," Ichigo asked through gritted teeth of annoyance, "did another Hollow just attack my house? I mean, we're still repairing the giant fuck-hole you let the last one put in our house."

"First of all; that was not my fault, dammit!" Rukia yelled as Ichigo leapt another roof, "Secondly, I already told you; Hollows are attracted to large quantities of Spiritual Energy. Most of the Hollows in this town are probably going to come after you at some point."

"Well fuck all kinds of duck, you better hope they use the damn _door_ next time." Ichigo said as he continued his way toward Orihime's apartment. Dammit, he never realized just how far the girl lived until now when his heart was pounding in his chest. Every second it took to get there was one more that Orihime was in supreme danger from her now demonic brother.

* * *

Meanwhile at Orihime's house, Orihime and Tatsuki were speaking with one another still as the night wore on.

"Oh yeah! I saw Ichigo today!" Orihime said suddenly as Tatsuki gave her friend a look.

"Orihime, we have classes with Ichigo. He's our friend. We see him everyday." Tatsuki stated flatly as Orihime ignored her tone.

"No, I mean outside of school. He was with that new girl. Rukia Kuchiki." Orihime informed as Tatsuki crossed her arms.

"Oh really?" Tatsuki asked in a bit of interest, knowing that despite her cheerful tone Orihime was a bit worried. Tatsuki and anyone else with eyes could tell that the auburn-haired Orihime Inoue had feelings for the orange-headed Ichigo Kurosaki.

Well, anyone with eyes except Ichigo himself. But really, the boy was a jackass when it came to noticing other people's feelings toward him. Hell, even after all the years they knew each other, he still hadn't figured out-

"Oh no!" Orihime exclaimed, bringing Tatsuki out of her thoughts. It was then that Tatsuki noticed how Orihime stood up and walked over to her cute pink teddy bear, which Tatsuki saw had a noticeable rip in it. "You poor thing, you have a big rip in your face." Orihime continued as thought the teddy would suddenly start wailing in pain.

That was when a rumbling rocked the girl's home a bit and Orihime noticed her hand was bleeding. There was thumping, a loud thumping that steadily grew louder as Orihime looked around.

"What's that?" the girl asked… and that was when something happened to her. Something that would be difficult to explain in normal words…

The next thing she knew was that she was outside of her body.

The Hollow that was once her brother was after her after all…

"_What's going on?_" the poor girl thought to herself in the midst of her shock.

She saw her body and froze as her mind tried to understand what was happening, not only that but she saw an oversized snake-man hybrid attacking Tatsuki. The busty girl could barely move and it was hard to breathe. But she got up and when she was about to lunge at the creature, a hand in front of her stopped her forward movement.

"Stay back, little Orihime." Jazmine commanded softly, "Let Huey handle this."

And that was when Orihime took notice of the black blur which rushed into the room from the back of the apartment. The giant creature backed off from Tatsuki when the black blur flashed a silver, but then cried out in agony as the black blur stopped at the other side of the room with it's back to the beast.

Seeing the afro of the black-clad figure, Orihime first thought was how Tatsuki was not so far off from her ideas of Huey being in the Mafia. Though Orihime figured Huey was involved in some sort of superhero Yakuza gang with the way he sheathed his sword at his side while a deep gash appeared on the monster's left shoulder, spraying blood everywhere in the room while Huey turned around to address it with his impassive maroon eyes.

"Consumed by your false fears, and crying in agony over superficial wounds. In death there is no greater honor than the absolution of sin. So why not, in death, die standing when in life you were forever kneeling under the weight of your transgressions." Huey said, somewhat poetically as Orihime found herself staring in awe of him.

"We're sorry we didn't sense him in time." Jazmine said, "But you and little Tatsuki will be alright. Don't worry."

Jazmine allowed Orihime to rush to her friend's side to see if young Tatsuki was okay while Huey kept the Hollow at bay until they could figure out what to do with it. However, Jazmine and Huey were a bit surprised that Tatsuki couldn't see Orihime when the girl lashed out with a terrified shout.

"Get away from me!" Tatsuki yelled in horror as Orihime flinched back in shock.

"_**She can't see you**_, _**Orihime**_." the Hollow's sinister voice sounded throughout the room as Huey held his sword at the ready.

"How do you know my name?" Orihime asked in further shock.

"_**You don't remember me**_, _**Orihime**_?" the Hollow asked as Orihime stared at it in fright. The monster sounded quite saddened before utter rage took over it's tone, "_**I'm hurt**_… _**How could you forget my voice**_?!"

"Well, your voice is sort of distorted." Huey said blandly, "But I guess that comes with being a low-level Hollow."

Huey's sword twitched when the Hollow's overly large hand slammed into it as he blocked the blow that had been meant for Orihime as the wide-eyed girl stood behind him and Jazmine with the Tatsuki girl already unconscious and moved into Jazmine's room. Huey flicked his sword up, delivering a shallow cut to the Hollow's hand as it drew back from the pain before quickly becoming enraged once more.

"_**You**_…" the Hollow growled, "_**You two and that orange-haired brat took her away from me**_!"

"What is he talking about?" a voice from the balcony asked as Huey glanced back over his shoulder to see Ichigo Kurosaki carrying Rukia on his back as he finally made it to the scene.

"Glad you're here," Huey said, "Take over. We're off-duty." and with that, Huey disappeared as Jazmine remained to safeguard Orihime.

"Ichigo…?" Orihime chipped in confusion, "Umm… why are you dressed like that? Are you part of the super-Yakuza, too?"

Ichigo turned to Orihime in shock, "What the-? You mean you can see me like this?" the boy asked as he remembered what Rukia had told him about how normal people couldn't see him or other spiritual-beings.

"Yes, I can." Orihime answered with a nod.

"Well, yeah." Ichigo decided as an answer to her question, "Yeah, Orihime, I'm with the super-Yakuza, or whatever."

"Okay, that's cool, I guess." Orihime said, "But umm… What's going on?"

Ichigo was about to answer her question with the normal, "you're in a weird dream" thing, but he grew shocked into silence when actually took in Orihime's appearance. Mostly the chain in the girls' busty chest which connected her to… her motionless body.

Holy shit he had come too late! He had let Orihime die, and it was all his fault!

Ichigo grew even more concerned as he noticed that Tatsuki was nowhere in sight even though he knew the girl had been there, what with the aroma of her mom's beef stew still in the air.

"The Tatsuki girl is alright," Jazmine informed, seeing the orange-haired boy's eyes shifting wildly in search of the missing girl, "Please, finish this so we can save Orihime."

"_**Orihime is dead**_!" the Hollow yelled in retort, bring attention back to it while Huey came from the back, now visible to all in his normal clothes and with no sword. "_**There's no way you can save her**_!"

"Give it up!" Ichigo said, unsheathing his enormous sword and pointing it directly at the Hollow, "I know you don't really want to hurt Orihime. Stop this before you do something you'll hate yourself for later! Don't let that mask control who you really are!"

The Hollow screeched at Ichigo's words, clutching it's head as it lashed out with it's tail to silence the boy. But it missed it's mark as Ichigo saw the blow coming and hopped over the limb. Ichigo brought his sword down in a flash of silver, and with a single slash made a deep cut along the scaly tail while the Hollow roared in pain.

"_**AAAAARRRGHH**_!" the Hollow yelled in pain, before lashing out at anything close, though when the tail swung outward at the out lookers, Huey stepped forward with a kick as his knocked the tail aside, "_**Stay out of my way**_!"

"Like hell I will!" Ichigo yelled back as this time the Hollow caught him off-guard with a burst of surprising speed. Huey's maroon eyes widened a fraction as he knocked Jazmine and Orihime to the ground while Rukia ducked down herself. The Hollow's tail lashed out in a wide circle, destroying most of the furniture in the small room while also slamming into Ichigo, taking him by surprise and sending him through the balcony glass sliding door and out of the building as Ichigo fell toward the small street below. And if that wasn't enough, Ichigo's brown eyes grew wide when the masked monster that was Orihime's deceased brother opened its large mouth and spat out _acid_ at him! It was clearly acid, because when a couple of drops got onto his robes, it burned right through them, leaving several small holes.

"Dammit, I kinda liked this thing." Ichigo muttered as he tried to right himself in the air, but soon he had his back to one of the walls around the street as he had stumbled around in his landing while also trying to make sure none of the acid got on skin. However, that was all Hollow-Sora needed to take him by surprise as it suddenly grabbed Ichigo by his torso with his enormous hand before applying a rather painful amount of pressure as Ichigo's mouth fell agape when he felt his back cracking.

"AHHH! Why is your hand so fucking big?!" Ichigo yelled despite the pain as the Hollow growled at him before adding his other hand to help apply more pressure. With a rather powerful squeeze, Ichigo let loose a silent scream of agony when he felt a snap, which that and the pain shooting through him indicated that his back was most definitely broken.

"Where are the others?" Rukia asked in panic as Huey watched the battle with a disinterested gaze. Jazmine's eyes were a lit with concern for the new-instated Reaper while she chewed her bottom lip.

"The others are on the other side of town dealing with Hollows of their own." Huey said before turning away from the fight, "This is but a test for the boy. I want to see if he has what it takes to end it."

"Stop it!" Orihime cried out from the hole that the Hollow had left in the side of her apartment. She then turned to Huey and the other two, a look of pleading on her face, "Please, make them stop!"

And the Hollow froze… right before throwing Ichigo to the street where the boy's body slammed into the harsh concrete below and flopped like a ball for a second before going still. Then the Hollow floated back up toward the house where Rukia got into a ready stance while Jazmine and Huey both placed themselves in the way of the Hollow's path to Orihime.

"_**Have you forgotten me**_?" the Hollow asked, lifting his hair to reveal his unexposed eye.

"His mask has been broken…" Huey mumbled in shock as Jazmine gape at the sight.

Orihime, however, gasped as she realized who it was.

"Sora…" the auburn-haired girl whispered as the Hollow nodded.

"_**Yes**_, _**Orihime**_." the Hollow that was Sora Inoue said, "_**When I first died, you would pray to me every day, but as time went on, you would pray less every day**_. _**All because you met that boy I just broke in half, and his family steered you away from me**_! _**Then**_…_** then that girl, Tatsuki, took you away as well**_. _**And then these two**_! _**All of them made you forget me**_!" the hate-filled Sora yelled as Rukia jumped out of the hole in the wall to check on Ichigo while Huey and Jazmine back into the room with Orihime behind them while the Hollow crept closer still.

"I didn't forget you…" Orihime whispered while fighting back tears, "How could you accuse me of something like that? I loved you-!"

"_**You **_**did**_** forget! You forgot me in favor of these people**_!" Hollow-Sora interrupted with his own sorrow as Orihime flinched back as if struck.

"_**And the pain… The pain I felt became so unbearable. So unbearable that all I wanted to do was kill**_…" Hollow-Sora said softly before it's hands shot forward, taking Huey by surprise as it slapped him and Jazmine away into opposite walls. The monster then took its hands, painfully grasping Orihime by the throat as the poor girl let out a loud gasp of pain. Her breath left her as her Hollowfied brother added more and more pressure to choke the life from her very soul.

"Enough!" came the shout as Huey's feet found the side of the monster's head and kicked it away from Orihime while Jazmine caught the girl in her arms. Ichigo leapt up from the street with Rukia as they reentered the house from the hole in the wall, the boy glaring in unbridled fury as he had witnessed the scene before it was cut short by Huey.

"Stop this!" Ichigo yelled, put Rukia down as he clutched his sword tightly in his hand. "How can you try to kill your own sister?! How can you call yourself her brother, you bastard?!"

"_**You know nothing of the pain I've felt for all these years**_!" Hollow-Sora growled at them all.

"I know the story about your parents!" Ichigo yelled in righteous anger at what he had seen. "You protected her then, but now you're nothing but a monster!"

"_**I don't need to listen to you**_!" Hollow-Sora yelled back as he reared back his clawed hand to claw away at the teen, but in his fury, Ichigo ruined that plan by running forward and cleanly slicing off the hand in one swift motion of his sword's blade.

"She is your sister! An older brother is supposed to protect their younger siblings, dammit!" Ichigo bellowed, "It doesn't matter if they're related by blood or not! Do you even understand what it is to have a family anymore? A family's supposed to help each other, not hurt each other! Or has that Hollow state of yours deluded your mind from that?!"

"She is still mine!" the Hollow roared back, "And if I can't have her, then I won't let anyone else! Especially not you!"

Ichigo glared at the large monster, "Hey, Rukia?"

"Ichigo?" Rukia questioned.

"Remember when you first told me about Hollows… you were right." he said as he gripped his sword in both hands while assuming a Kendo stance. "When a soul becomes a Hollow… they really are nothing but monsters…"

Hollow-Sora grew incredibly angered by Ichigo's solemn comment as he lunged at the boy, intent on showing him monster if that was what he wanted. The Hollow decided to finish the strawberry boy off by devouring his soul in one clean bite as monsters did.

Sadly, he didn't count on one thing, nor did anyone else as they were all left wide-eyed and speechless when Orihime got in the way.

"Orihime…" Sora managed to gasp, realizing what he had actually done to his beloved little sister.

Orihime dropped to the ground in front of Ichigo and Hollow-Sora with a horrible bite wound in her shoulder. Jazmine rushed forward, skidding to her knees as Rukia moved forward to help in any way she could after seeing what the foolish girl had done in order to stop the fighting.

"Don't worry, she'll still live," Jazmine assured as her hands roamed over Orihime's wound with a gentle green glow, "So long as the Chain of Fate is attached to her body she can be saved by some simple healing."

"Jazmine," Huey called as Jazmine blinked, glancing up from her work to Huey, who was standing behind her.

…with the other end of Orihime's chain in his hand while he gave them a flat look.

"Oh… well…" Jazmine said, staring at the chain as she gulped, "Yes, well… I can still save her. It'll just take a little more work."

"I'll prep the room when this is all over with." Huey said as he returned his gaze to the Hollow and Ichigo whilst dropping the chain.

Huey noticed how the Hollowfied Sora's gaze went somberly over Orihime's trembling form. Then, the Hollow that was once Orihime's brother looked at her hair, or rather what was in her hair. Huey glanced to where the Hollow's gaze was only to see two hairpins, which were blue and flower-shaped. Huey felt a resonance from the hairpins as he gazed upon them, and then let his gaze drift to the monstrous appearance of the brother.

"Bonds are never truly broken… merely out of tune like a lost melody… And one day, you shall play that melody again, with those in which you form such melodious bonds." Huey muttered as he bowed his head for a moment.

"Those hairpins…" Sora managed to say even in the shock of what he had done.

"She told me about those…" Ichigo muttered, his expression softening at seeing the guilt in the Hollow's true human eyes, "She wears them every day, never taking them off…"

He knew the story. Those hairpins had been the gift that Sora gave to Orihime one day, Orihime didn't like them because they weren't "grown up" enough. Sadly enough, of all days for that to happen, it was the day in which Sora had died.

"I didn't know…" Sora whispered, unable to think of anything but his boundless sorrow for having harmed his sister, and the anger that filled his empty heart while images filled his mind of all the times Orihime had seemed so happy without him around.

Hollow-Sora clutched at his head, thrashing about with a long wail of suffering. Sora reached up to his face, and to the shock of all those present, he ripped off his mask with one long scream that slowly become less monstrous and more human by the second.

"Please…" Sora said, now looking like he did in life. He gently took Ichigo's hands in his own enormous ones as he guided the boy's blade to his chest. "Please… kill me…" he said, looking as though he would begin to weep at any moment.

Ichigo was hesitant. Even though he now knew what his sword would do, seeing Sora's actual face like this… It was too much. He couldn't stab the man who had raised Orihime until his dying day.

"Get on with it, boy." Huey snapped as even his heart felt a twinge of emotion for the scene. "Be done with this, and end the suffering!"

"Ichigo." Rukia called out, snapping the boy's attention to her as she stood to her feet. "Remember what I said. It's not so much killing him as it sending him to heaven."

"Yeah, but-"

"Do it!" Rukia shouted, her hands and voice trembling as Huey placed a hand on her shoulder to keep her steady.

"I'm sorry for what I said before…" Huey whispered for Rukia's ears only, but Jazmine heard, and smiled a little to herself as she continued to treat Orihime's wound.

Ichigo's hands shook. He couldn't do this. It was too much.

But… the look on Sora's face. The look of one who would accept death if it meant ending the pain he caused as well as finally finding peace on the other side…

Ichigo took a deep breath, screwing his eyes shut as he stabbed forward, running Sora through with his katana. He felt sick and ashamed.

Was this what a Shinigami was truly to do?

He wondered if he could continue after this…

Soon Sora's form began to disappear in sparks of light, just as Orihime regained consciousness.

"Sora… there's something I want to say before you go…" Orihime whispered, giving her vanishing brother a large warm smile that melted his heart. "Have a nice day…"

Those words… they were so lively that for a moment Sora truly felt alive as he once did when he was with her… For that moment, he could remember all the good times they shared as siblings. Sora couldn't help but smile as his soul was being cleansed. He was sure that he'd find peace in the next life over, and that someday far off, Orihime would join him there.

And so Sora's soul was put to rest, free of his hate and anger. The last feelings he knew, being love and peace.

"_Thank you, Orihime. I can pass on in peace now, thanks to you_." Sora's voice came from the winds as a gentle breeze washed over them all.

The battle over with, Ichigo collapsed against the wall in exhaustion as Orihime closed her eyes to say a short and silent prayer for her brother's soul. Then, her eyes opened as she addressed Jazmine, who was hovering over her with her glowing green hands.

"How is Tatsuki?" Orihime asked as Jazmine smiled down at her.

"Your friend will be fine. It was very easy to stop the bleeding of her wounds when I placed her in bed. After I've fully tended to you, then I'll finish my work on her and complete her healing." Jazmine said as Orihime smiled.

"I'm glad for that. Thank you." Orihime said before she titled her head so she could address Huey, Rukia, and Ichigo, "Thank you as well, for everything tonight."

Ichigo gave a small nod, a tiny smile on his face as glanced away. He was glad it was dark out, or else the others might see him blushing.

Couldn't have that ruining his image, now could he?

Ichigo sighed, glancing up at Rukia and Huey. He clamored to his feet with a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck as he stretched his protesting muscles.

"Well, the cat's outta the bag now." Ichigo said, smiling down at Orihime. "Welcome to the team, Orihime."

* * *

"I'm serious!" Orihime exclaimed to her friends as they ate lunch outside in the courtyard the next day, "A ninja broke into my house last night!"

"You always have the weirdest stories, Orihime." one of the girls said with a laugh as Orihime pouted.

"Why doesn't anyone believe me?" Orihime asked, pouting like a child.

Over them, Ichigo and Rukia sat alone atop the building's roof watching over Orihime and Tatsuki as both appeared as though yesterday had been nothing but a dream.

"That memory trick… you did the same thing to my family that first night, huh?" Ichigo asked as Rukia nodded.

"Yes, I did." Rukia replied as Ichigo sighed.

"It seems kind of cruel, though, to make Orihime forget being able to make peace with her brother's spirit." Ichigo admitted as he turned away from the girls below to lean his back against the roof's safety railing while the breeze caught his orange locks.

"Maybe, but we couldn't have her remembering us or the others. She might slip-up, and reveal our presence to the wrong people." Rukia said as Ichigo sighed again, running a hand through his hair.

"I guess, but I still don't like it." Ichigo said, his usual scowl deepening a little as he finished his small carton of milk before chucking it in the nearby trash bin.

"Though it's pretty impressive how that Miss Jazmine healed all our injuries in one night. She's good."

"I helped…" Rukia muttered as Ichigo blinked at her.

"Oh, that's right. You took care of Tatsuki's shoulder while Miss Jazmine was doing all the real work on me and Orihime." Ichigo said, scratching his chin, "I guess that was impressive, too."

Deciding to ignore his tone and take the small compliment he gave, Rukia smirked. "Thank you. I was top in my class in Kido spells."

"Kido…? You mean that stuff you used to cuff me that first night?" Ichigo asked as Rukia nodded.

"Yes," Rukia said, but then bowed her head, "Though my superiors are much better at it than I am… except maybe Sir Riley and Madam Cynthia, because they don't like Kido that much for some reason."

"Yeah, I'm sure you're better than them…" Ichigo said, not really paying attention to her as he went back to watching over Orihime and Tatsuki. He could have lost them both if it wasn't for Huey and Jazmine holding off the enraged Hollowfied Sora until he came. If not for them, his friends could have died.

He owed them a lot, and he had to begrudgingly accept that Huey- Mister Huey, was an okay guy. And he had already respected Nurse Jazmine, but now he was truly endeared to her as a respectable figure.

"I've fought three Hollows in the last few days…" Ichigo said suddenly, looking down at his friends as they happily chatted, "These things are way more common that I had first thought. And you said that they'll be targeting me and those close to me because of my higher Spirit Energy." Ichigo turned to Rukia, their piercing gazes clashing against each other as they tried to read the other. "As much as I hate the idea, I can't afford to take this business lightly. I've seen an extent of what I'm getting myself into. Now I need your help to prepare myself for the worst that's still to come."

"Are you saying you're ready?" Rukia asked with a hard look as Ichigo shook his head.

"No, but it doesn't matter if I am or not. I need to protect the people here; my friends… my family… all the innocent people in this town that don't deserve to have their souls eaten by those monsters. I need your help, Rukia. Will you give it to me?" Ichigo asked, looking the raven-haired Reaper straight in the eye.

He had never noticed how violet her eyes were until just then…

"If we are to succeed at this, then I cannot say no." Rukia sighed, "Prepare yourself, Ichigo Kurosaki. Because now you're under _my_ tutelage."

Ichigo didn't know why, but he was sure that her tutelage was synonymous with Hell.

Rukia smiled deviously, but the smile dropped for a moment when she pulled out her beeping cell phone. Then the smile came back, bigger than before as a twinkle in the raven-haired girl's eyes made Ichigo gulp nervously while Rukia focused her gaze on him.

"And we couldn't have picked a better time. I've just received orders."


End file.
